Scientists detect possible ‘mini-lightning’ on Mars

By Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) - Scientists have identified possible lightning on Mars after analyzing the swirling winds picked up by a NASA robotic spacecraft, according to a report this week.

A French-led research team said a microphone on NASA’s Perseverance rover recorded the crackling sounds of electrical discharges.

Researchers recorded 55 instances of what they call “mini-lightning” on Mars over two Martian years, almost four Earth years, mostly during dust storms.

The tiny electrical arcs occurred within about six feet of the microphone on Perseverance’s mast, which also carries cameras and lasers for studying Martian rocks.

Researchers said the sparks from these electrical bursts, similar to static electricity on Earth, can be clearly heard amid the gusts of wind and swirling Martian dust picked up by the microphone.

Baptiste Chide, lead author of the study, said scientists have been searching for signs of lightning and electrical activity on Mars for the past 50 years.

Another scientist cautioned that the evidence, although strong, comes from a single instrument intended to study rock composition and that the electrical discharges were heard but not directly observed.

Until new instruments can verify the results, researchers noted that they may still question whether Mars really has lightning, which is already confirmed on Jupiter and Saturn.