Mars Impact Crater

[steve_bank]

Space rock slams into Mars and explodes

Activity in the Martian desert.

mashable.com

By Mark Kaufman on September 19, 2022

Just over a year ago, a space rock hurtled through the Martian atmosphere, broke apart, and slammed into the red desert.

NASA just revealed footage of the new impact craters on Sept. 19, as well as three other earlier impacts. The collisions were significant enough for the space agency's geologic probe, InSight, to detect "marsquakes" from up to 180 miles away.

The image atop this story shows the result of a meteoroid — a space rock that has yet to impact the surface — that exploded in the Martian atmosphere into at least three "shards," ultimately leaving three fresh craters in the ground, NASA explained. The InSight lander, equipped with a sensitive seismometer, detected the explosion and impacts. Although InSight is running out of power, it certainly continues to make meaningful extraterrestrial observations.

SEE ALSO: 'Monster' Mars quake shows the red planet isn't nearly dead

After InSight detected the booms, NASA sent its Martian satellite, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, to scour the region for darkened patches on the desert floor. Dark areas are telltale evidence of newly disturbed soil and dust. (The unnatural blue hues are added to make impact details more apparent.)

 

[steve_bank]

'Monster' Mars quake shows the red planet isn't nearly dead

NASA detected its biggest Martian temblor yet.

mashable.com

A potent quake recently shook the Martian desert.

NASA's InSight lander — sent to probe Mars' inner workings — observed the largest temblor ever detected on another planet on May 4. The marsquake was an estimated magnitude 5, which is nearly the strongest shake planetary scientists expected to observe on the red world. Earth experiences much stronger quakes, but it's also a world teeming with geologic action, shifting tectonic plates, and flowing lava.