The formation and disappearance of a 4,000km-wide dust storm on Mars

The UAE's Hope spacecraft observes the formation and disappearance of a giant dust storm in the southern hemisphere of the red planet.

The UAE's Hope probe captured dramatic images of a dust storm forming and dissipating on Mars in about two weeks, the Mail on March 14 reported. Mars has a much thinner atmosphere than Earth but still enough to generate wind. Winds pick up tiny dust particles, creating violent dust storms that can cover a large area for weeks.

Dust storms began to form in the southern hemisphere of Mars on December 29, 2021.

Hope provides unprecedented data on how dust storms develop over time. The spacecraft uses infrared cameras and spectrometers to study the thermal state of the red planet's surface and lower atmosphere. Hope also provided UAE scientists with details on the geographical distribution of dust, water vapor, water and CO2 ice clouds.

Hope entered Mars orbit from February 2021. The UAE Space Agency confirmed it began monitoring dust storms in the region last December through its EXI camera system and EMIRS spectrometer.

The first signs of a new storm were observed on December 29. At that time, astronomers noticed that the Hellas crater in the southern hemisphere of Mars was filled with thick dust clouds, while the surrounding clouds were thinner. On January 5, they observed a 2,400km-wide dust storm to the east, obscuring Syrtis Major - a dark region on Mars.

Scientists also detected unusual gray ice clouds around Syrtis Major, while the Hellas crater was completely obscured by a layer of dust. A few days later, gray ice and dust clouds expanded north of Hellas with increasing thickness.

By this time, the storm had risen high above the ground and spread about 4,000 km from Syrtis Major to the east, then reached further west on January 9. Experts made the last observations of the storm on January 14 and found it had dissipated into a cloud. Thus, the giant storm formed, developed and disappeared in about two weeks.

Hope is an important vehicle in orbit that helps track the location and development of Martian dust storms, providing unprecedented observations and insights into their nature and characteristics. In the future, this data could help humans living on the red planet determine if it's safe to step outside.