NASA’s Perseverance rover witnessed a dance of “dust devils” on Mars – they were fighting over territory

During one of its observations of the Jezero Crater area, NASA’s Perseverance rover witnessed a collision of two dust devils. The event occurred one kilometer from the rover, when its cameras recorded the collision of a 65-meter and 5-meter “dust devil”, as such phenomena are commonly called. The smaller of them then disappeared, and the larger one dissolved into the planet’s atmosphere about 10 minutes later.

Image source: AI generation Grok 3/3DNews

Dust devils on Mars are considered one of the most powerful factors changing the appearance of the planet. They occur when heated air near the surface of Mars rises upward, forming funnels of dust and rock particles captured by the flow.

Image source: NASA

The study of dust vortices is not only conducted by rovers on the surface of the Red Planet – it is also conducted from orbit. In fact, this phenomenon was first discovered by orbital missions. The behavior of these small “tornadoes” allows us to judge the activity of the Martian atmosphere, the direction and strength of the winds. This data is necessary for making weather forecasts on the planet.

In the image of the dust devil collision obtained by Perseverance’s cameras, several other swirls can also be seen in the distance. This indicates a high frequency of such formations. Jokes aside, “dust devils” may well become the calling card of Mars. At the very least, they can cause a lot of trouble for future colonists. High radiation on the planet’s surface does not encourage frequent walks, and dust settling on equipment may be a good reason to leave the safety of the shelter for maintenance.

By studying dust devils now, NASA is laying the foundations for future life on Mars—and such information will certainly not be superfluous.