by Mars has had frequent planet-wide auroras in recent months, including an unprecedented trio of events in February.
Experts say the sudden increase is the result of the ongoing solar maximum.
The planet is often bombarded with high-energy radiation from the sun, known as solar energetic particles (SEPs), which penetrate the red world's thin atmosphere and excite molecules of hydrogen, causing them to emit light, similar to how auroras work on Earth.
However, unlike the southern and northern lights on our planet, Martian auroras — also known as proton auroras — emit ultraviolet light instead of visible light, meaning they cannot be seen with the naked eye.
NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft, which has been orbiting the Red Planet since 2013, detected the first proton auroras on Mars in 2016.
Source
Experts say the sudden increase is the result of the ongoing solar maximum.
The planet is often bombarded with high-energy radiation from the sun, known as solar energetic particles (SEPs), which penetrate the red world's thin atmosphere and excite molecules of hydrogen, causing them to emit light, similar to how auroras work on Earth.
However, unlike the southern and northern lights on our planet, Martian auroras — also known as proton auroras — emit ultraviolet light instead of visible light, meaning they cannot be seen with the naked eye.
NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft, which has been orbiting the Red Planet since 2013, detected the first proton auroras on Mars in 2016.
Source
