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Sound of lightning captured on Mars — but it's nothing like on Earth

NASA's Perseverance rover captured audio of dozens of lightning-like electric discharges.  (Supplied: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)

Researchers say more than 50 instances of lightning on Mars were detected on audio recordings from the Perseverance rover — the first time such data has been captured.

The team suggested dust devils and dust storms could be to blame, mimicking a similar electricity-producing mechanism that also happens on Earth. 

While experts said the audio evidence was "persuasive", photo or video evidence of the actual flashes would be needed to confirm lightning on Mars.

After decades of searching, it seems that lightning does occur on Mars — but it's nothing like the large bolts we experience on Earth.   

Detection of triboelectric discharges during dust events on Mars

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Lightning is among the most energetic manifestation of electrical activity in planetary atmospheres, with documented observations not only on Earth but also on Saturn and Jupiter1. On Mars, the existence of electrical activity has long been suspected2,3 but never directly demonstrated. The dusty atmosphere of Mars undergoes aeolian processes, ranging from wind-blown dust and sand, metre-to-hundred-metre-sized dust devils to thousand-kilometre-scale dust storms4, which, in Earth’s deserts, can become electrified through triboelectric charging5,6,7. For this reason, electric fields have been predicted to build up on Mars8,9,10, but with no measurement of Martian atmospheric electrical activity so far. Here we report in situ detections of triboelectric discharges, identified by their electrical and acoustic signatures captured by the SuperCam microphone aboard the Perseverance rover11,12. Fifty-five events have been detected over two Martian years, usually associated with dust devils and dust storm convective fronts. These serendipitous observations demonstrate that Martian electric fields can reach the breakdown threshold of the near-surface atmosphere of Mars, predicted to be on the order of several tens of kV m−1. Such electrical activity could affect dust dynamics13,14 and potentially fuel a reactive electrochemical environment enhancing the oxidizing capacity of the atmosphere, with consequences for the preservation of organic molecules15,16. This in situ evidence may have implications for surface chemistry, habitability and human exploration.

Scientists capture sounds of 'lightning' on Mars

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Scientists have detected what they believe to be lightning on Mars by eavesdropping on the whirling wind recorded by NASA's Perseverance rover.

The crackling of electrical discharges was captured by a microphone on the rover, a French-led team reported Wednesday.

The researchers documented 55 instances of what they call "mini lightning" over two Martian years, primarily during dust storms and dust devils. Almost all occurred on the windiest Martian sols, or days, during dust storms and dust devils.

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