Scientists have detected the most powerful earthquake ever recorded on Mars. Space agency NASA’s InSight lander has revealed that a strong earthquake had occurred here on May 4 last year. Although its intensity was around 4.7, it is said to be higher on Mars than on Earth. According to scientists, this has happened due to movement in tectonic plates.
Key points
- An earthquake of magnitude 4.7 has been recorded by the InSight lander on Mars, which may not be big on Earth, but it is a big shock for Mars.
- The magnitude 4.7 earthquake was centered in the Al-Qahira Vallis region in Mars’ southern hemisphere, about 2,000 km southeast of InSight’s location just north of the equator.
- Most earthquakes on Mars have been recorded in an area called Cerberus Fossae, located east of InSight.
- Scientists first cited the impact of meteorites as the cause of earthquakes on Mars, but after research, they found tectonic activity to be the real cause of earthquakes on Mars.
- Unlike Earth, Mars does not have the geological process called plate tectonics that typically causes earthquakes.
- It is believed that the vibration may have occurred due to the release of tension force in the inner layer of Mars. Because earthquake means vibration and this vibration is caused by energy released from the inner part of the surface.
- The stresses in Mars’ interior are the result of billions of years of evolution, with different parts of the planet cooling and contracting at different rates.
- InSight, sent by NASA to Mars, was retired in the year 2022. Which had detected 1,319 earthquakes with its seismometer equipment.
Why is this so important
- This can help us better understand the tectonic processes and seismic activity of Mars, which will be helpful for human habitation on Mars in the future.
Conclusion
- The Earth’s crust is divided into huge plates that are always moving, causing earthquakes.
- The crust of Mars is a single solid plate. But this does not mean that everything is calm on Mars.
- There are no active plate tectonic processes going on on Mars. But the planet is still gradually shrinking and cooling, hence there is still movement within its inner layer.
Mars
- It is the fourth planet after Earth in order of distance from the Sun. It completes its revolution around the Sun in 687 days.
- Because the surface of Mars is red, it is also called ‘Red Planet’.
- The atmosphere on this planet is extremely thin. Its rotation speed is similar to the Earth’s rotation speed. Phobos and Deimos are two satellites of Mars. ‘Deimos’ is the smallest satellite in the solar system. The highest mountain on this planet is ‘Nix Olympia’, which is three times higher than Everest.
- For the first time, information about ice caps and frozen water was received here from an artificial satellite named Marx Odyssey. Possibility of life on Mars and its environment. Many countries of the world are making efforts to study it.
What is InSight
- The full name of InSight is Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations.
- NASA launched Lander InSight in May this year to explore the surface of Mars and the possibilities of life there.
- It is designed to land on Mars’ surface and measure earthquakes before sending a manned mission to Mars.
- InSight landed on the surface of Mars on November 27 this year.
- The goal of this NASA mission is to study the ground and interior parts of Mars.
- This lander landed in a flat plain named Elysium Planitia, which is near the equator of Mars.
- This seismometer installed by InSight is being considered a milestone for this mission.
- This lander of NASA, costing 1 billion dollars, runs on solar energy and battery energy.
- InSight is designed to operate for 26 months.
- It is noteworthy that before InSight, NASA’s lander ‘Curiosity’ had landed on Mars in 2012.