NEW DELHI: Nasa’s InSight lander has made a significant discovery on Mars, detecting the largest quake ever recorded on the Red Planet.
This Martian tremor measured 4.7 on the magnitude scale, which may not sound big on Earth, but it’s a substantial shake for our neighbouring planet.
Unlike Earth, Mars doesn’t have the same geological process called plate tectonics which usually causes earthquakes. Initially, scientists thought that a meteorite impact might be the culprit behind this unusual “marsquake.”
However, their search for an impact crater didn’t lead to any findings. This led scientists to a new conclusion – this particular quake was actually triggered by tectonic activity happening within Mars itself. It’s like rumbling deep inside the planet, giving researchers a better understanding of what makes Mars tremble and move. This discovery sheds new light on the seismic activities of Mars, unravelling the secrets of its interior.
“We concluded that the largest marsquake seen by InSight was tectonic, not an impact. This is important as it shows the faults on Mars can host hefty marsquakes,” said planetary scientist Ben Fernando of the University of Oxford in England, lead author of the research published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters to news agency Reuters.
“We really thought that this event might be an impact. This represents a significant step forward in our understanding of Martian seismic activity and takes us one step closer to better unraveling the planet’s tectonic processes,” added Imperial College London planetary scientist and study co-author Constantinos Charalambous, co-chair of InSight’s Geology Working Group.
In 2022, Nasa ended its four-year mission with InSight. During its time on Mars, InSight’s seismometer recorded 1,319 marsquakes.
Unlike Earth, where the outer layer, called the crust, is divided into big plates that move around and cause earthquakes, Mars has a single, unbroken crust.
“There are still faults that are active on Mars. The planet is still slowly shrinking and cooling, and there is still motion within the crust even though there are no active plate tectonic processes going on anymore. These faults can trigger quakes,” Fernando told Reuters.
The researchers determined that the 4.7 magnitude quake was centered in the Al-Qahira Vallis region in the Martian southern hemisphere, roughly 1,200 miles (2,000 km) southeast of InSight’s location just north of the equator. They think it originated perhaps a few dozen miles (km) below the surface, Reuters reported.
“Most of the marsquakes we’ve detected thus far have been associated with a region called Cerberus Fossae, located eastward of InSight. Conversely, the origin of this one left us puzzled, as no discernible surface features indicated ongoing tectonic processes as a likely cause, particularly ones that would cause such a powerful quake,” Charalambous added.
The energy released during this particular marsquake was more powerful than all the other marsquakes InSight had recorded combined. Researchers first thought it resembled two meteorite impacts that InSight had detected, creating craters about 500 feet (150 meters) wide.
They asked space agencies from Europe, the US, China, India, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which have spacecraft watching Mars, to look for signs of an impact on that day, but they didn’t find any evidence.
“The absence of a crater in our image search for this large marsquake represents a significant milestone in interpreting seismic signals on Mars,” Charalambous said.
Considering the upcoming human missions to Mars, a greater understanding of Martian seismic activity is pertinent.
“On Earth, a quake of this size would probably break windows, shake things off shelves, etc., but would not bring the house down,” Fernando said.
Charalambous said the location of the majority of the marsquakes detected by InSight remained uncertain, with a poor understanding of the mechanisms that triggered them.
“Each seismic event detected by InSight is a valuable piece of the puzzle, but this particular event plays a crucial role in unveiling the Red Planet’s geological history, shedding light on its interior and evolution,” Charalambous said.
“Furthermore, it provides essential insights into the distribution of seismic activity on Mars, which is a vital consideration for planning future human missions to the planet,” he added.
This Martian tremor measured 4.7 on the magnitude scale, which may not sound big on Earth, but it’s a substantial shake for our neighbouring planet.
Unlike Earth, Mars doesn’t have the same geological process called plate tectonics which usually causes earthquakes. Initially, scientists thought that a meteorite impact might be the culprit behind this unusual “marsquake.”
However, their search for an impact crater didn’t lead to any findings. This led scientists to a new conclusion – this particular quake was actually triggered by tectonic activity happening within Mars itself. It’s like rumbling deep inside the planet, giving researchers a better understanding of what makes Mars tremble and move. This discovery sheds new light on the seismic activities of Mars, unravelling the secrets of its interior.
“We concluded that the largest marsquake seen by InSight was tectonic, not an impact. This is important as it shows the faults on Mars can host hefty marsquakes,” said planetary scientist Ben Fernando of the University of Oxford in England, lead author of the research published this week in the journal Geophysical Research Letters to news agency Reuters.
“We really thought that this event might be an impact. This represents a significant step forward in our understanding of Martian seismic activity and takes us one step closer to better unraveling the planet’s tectonic processes,” added Imperial College London planetary scientist and study co-author Constantinos Charalambous, co-chair of InSight’s Geology Working Group.
In 2022, Nasa ended its four-year mission with InSight. During its time on Mars, InSight’s seismometer recorded 1,319 marsquakes.
Unlike Earth, where the outer layer, called the crust, is divided into big plates that move around and cause earthquakes, Mars has a single, unbroken crust.
“There are still faults that are active on Mars. The planet is still slowly shrinking and cooling, and there is still motion within the crust even though there are no active plate tectonic processes going on anymore. These faults can trigger quakes,” Fernando told Reuters.
The researchers determined that the 4.7 magnitude quake was centered in the Al-Qahira Vallis region in the Martian southern hemisphere, roughly 1,200 miles (2,000 km) southeast of InSight’s location just north of the equator. They think it originated perhaps a few dozen miles (km) below the surface, Reuters reported.
“Most of the marsquakes we’ve detected thus far have been associated with a region called Cerberus Fossae, located eastward of InSight. Conversely, the origin of this one left us puzzled, as no discernible surface features indicated ongoing tectonic processes as a likely cause, particularly ones that would cause such a powerful quake,” Charalambous added.
The energy released during this particular marsquake was more powerful than all the other marsquakes InSight had recorded combined. Researchers first thought it resembled two meteorite impacts that InSight had detected, creating craters about 500 feet (150 meters) wide.
They asked space agencies from Europe, the US, China, India, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which have spacecraft watching Mars, to look for signs of an impact on that day, but they didn’t find any evidence.
“The absence of a crater in our image search for this large marsquake represents a significant milestone in interpreting seismic signals on Mars,” Charalambous said.
Considering the upcoming human missions to Mars, a greater understanding of Martian seismic activity is pertinent.
“On Earth, a quake of this size would probably break windows, shake things off shelves, etc., but would not bring the house down,” Fernando said.
Charalambous said the location of the majority of the marsquakes detected by InSight remained uncertain, with a poor understanding of the mechanisms that triggered them.
“Each seismic event detected by InSight is a valuable piece of the puzzle, but this particular event plays a crucial role in unveiling the Red Planet’s geological history, shedding light on its interior and evolution,” Charalambous said.
“Furthermore, it provides essential insights into the distribution of seismic activity on Mars, which is a vital consideration for planning future human missions to the planet,” he added.