The chances of you being struck by lightning on Mars are much lower than on Earth

If lightning really exists on Mars, its frequency is very low and energy is much less than that on Earth.

The cause is said to be due to the thin air layer of Red planet. The first evidence of lightning on Mars was first introduced in 2009, after scientists found the microwaves emitted from the dust storm raging on it in 2006.

The charge is difficult to appear on basalt particles when conditions of air pressure are low.

Data were obtained after 5 years of working on the European Mars Express, and the 3-month operation of the Allen Telescope (USA) then found no further information about the sound of lightning on Mars. . To find out why lightning is so rare on Mars, scientists have focused on analyzing the forms of lightning formed from Mars dust storms.

Sand particles as well as other grains in storms through triboelectric effect as well as electrostatic effects will charge. When two objects are constantly colliding and rubbing against each other, the surface of this object can take away electrons from the surface of the other object, causing an electrical imbalance, meaning that an object will be positively charged, the other negative charge. In the study, the scientists experimented with basalt particles taken from a rock located at the Martian crater.

They put these 1-2 mm spherical particles on a vibrating plate for 30 minutes, then take a central particle to measure the charge. In addition, experts also set different air pressure levels during the test. It is known that the average atmospheric pressure on Mars is 6 millibars. On Earth, atmospheric pressure averages about 1,000 millibars at sea level.

The finding shows that the charge is difficult to appear on basalt particles when conditions of air pressure are low. Because of this result, scientists believe that atmospheric pressure is one of the reasons why lightning rarely occurs on Mars and, if it does, not much energy. In addition, on Earth, some agents such as cosmic rays from deep space or ultra-intense radiation from the Sun can also generate the electricity needed for lightning. On Mars, these elements are not enough to help create lightning.