Hear about a meteoroid crashing on Mars in NASA recording

Researchers from the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and international organizations collaborating on the InSight mission have published information on the first record of a meteor impact on Mars in the journal Nature Geosciences.

For the first time since arriving on the red planet in 2018, the InSight spacecraft was able to pick up not only seismic signals, but also the explosion and crashing sound of an incoming meteoroid.

The meteor split into three as it entered the red planet’s atmosphere. See the video.

The scientists explain that the crashing sound, a cartoonish “bloop,” is caused by heat trapped in the Martian atmosphere, causing the sound waves to travel at different speeds.

According to them, under these conditions, higher frequency (high) waves travel slower than low frequency (low) waves, so whoever is close will hear a “bang” and we will hear a “bloop” from afar. .

But in addition to seismic and sound waves, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter flew over the domain. The accident site was photographed using the HiRISE camera, which produces high-resolution images.

Three more impacts were documented between 2020 and 2021, and researchers are excited about the record, as it opens up new avenues of research into how the Martian atmosphere works and how often meteorites hit the planet.

This data helps scientists learn more about the formation of Mars and the rocky planets.