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The Hope spacecraft, sent on an unprecedented mission by the United Arab Emirates, captured the most detailed images so far from the “northern lights” of Mars. They have a mechanism similar to those seen on Earth: they are the result of solar winds emanating from the planet’s magnetic fields.
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They aren’t boreals on Mars, however. The word boreal refers to the Earth’s North Pole. In the case of the neighboring planet, auroras can be observed in other regions of the globe. Particles from the solar wind come into contact with oxygen in the atmosphere, which causes the glow.
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A Emirates Mars Mission (EMM) arrived on Mars in February this year and began making its scientific records on May 23rd. The Hope spacecraft has 1.35 tons and the mission cost US$ 200 million (more than R$ 1 billion).
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Capturing the Martian aurora was not among the main plans, so EMM chief science officer Hessa Al Matroushi of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center in Dubai told Nature the images were “just a gift”. The renowned magazine reported the photographs, but the researchers have yet to publish a scientific study of the new EMM records.
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In fact, the mission’s objective is to carry out, for the first time, a complete survey of the Martian atmosphere, studying daily and seasonal changes. The UAE has ambitious plans: they want to establish a colony on Mars in 2117.
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