By: Theodore Tong
On May 20, 2024, the planet Mars was hit by an enormous solar storm. Shannon Curry, principal investigator of NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution orbiter, or MAVEN, at the University of Colorado, Boulder, said, “This was the strongest solar energetic particle event we’ve seen to date.”
If there were astronauts on Mars, they would see a barrage of auroras in the sky. The auroras would cover Mars entirely from the north pole to the south pole.
According to the New York Times, “While last month’s auroras were bewitching, they served as a reminder that Mars can be a dangerous, radiation-smothered place and that future astronaut visitors will have to beware.”
The event began with a massive solar flare followed closely by a potent coronal mass ejection from the sun, described as “formidable” by experts.
Researchers, including Mathew Owens from the University of Reading, noted the rapid arrival of X-rays, gamma rays, and charged particles at Mars. Unlike Earth, Mars lacks a global magnetic field to deflect these particles, allowing them to directly interact with the planet’s atmosphere. Nick Schneider, lead scientist on MAVEN’s Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph at the University of Colorado, Boulder, explained that this lack of protection resulted in a widespread atmospheric interaction and the triggering of colorful auroras across Mars.
The MAVEN orbiter captured vivid images of these auroras, revealing a global ultraviolet glow and a distinctive green hue caused by excited oxygen atoms in the atmosphere. However, not all Martian residents were unaffected; Mars rovers such as Curiosity and orbiters like Mars Odyssey faced technical challenges. Navigation and star-tracking cameras were inundated with static from the charged particles, akin to television “snow,” while spacecraft solar panels experienced degradation similar to that seen over a typical year due to the intense solar bombardment.
Despite these challenges, all spacecraft were working adequately, with scientists eagerly analyzing the data collected during the event.
While solar storms present risks to space missions, they also provide invaluable opportunities for researchers to study the interactions between solar activity and planetary atmospheres. As humanity continues to explore and observe the solar system, events like the May 20 solar storm serve as reminders of the dynamic and sometimes challenging environment beyond Earth.