Surely you remember the spectacular geomagnetic storm that occurred on Earth and that led to some incredible phenomena that left us stunned. Well that storm also ended up reaching Mars and it had devastating effects. In the short term, it provides us with very valuable information and we even have a video of what happened on Mars. In the long term, it means trouble.
A powerful solar eruption
As a result of what happened, a sunspot known as AR3697 sent a huge dose of hot plasma towards Mars. The impact materialized in the form of a level X12 solar flare, the highest among those recorded by scientists.
At the moment the flare impacted Mars, the planet’s atmosphere inflated and its temperature warmed to an extremely high level. Scientists say that, undoubtedly, Mars also had its own auroras. But beyond curiosity and imagining or seeing in the video above these lines how what happened, the important thing is to look to the future.
It will not be easy
If we have the video that we have shared with you, it is because there are different orbiters and vehicles on Mars who have the planet well covered and who make recordings from it. In particular, the one that has provided the best images of the storm has been NASA’s MAVEN orbiter, although others such as the Curiosity Mars rover have also been present.
Scientists explain that the lack of a magnetic field on Mars because it disappeared a long time ago leads to a multitude of particles falling on the planet in this type of event. As a consequence, the auroras are not limited in position, but rather cover the entire surface of the planet. Those who have had the opportunity to study what happened claim that they had never recorded a solar storm like this, so its effects are overwhelming.
Thanks to the RAD system that Curiosity Mars has, its managers have discovered that the radiation caused at the time of the storm reached 8,100 micrograys. ¿What could it mean for a person? that was in that place? They say that being under that shower of radiation would be equivalent to 30 chest x-rays. So scientists are both impressed and concerned. They say that, in 12 years, they have never seen anything like this. The force of the storm’s impact also caused the Odyssey orbiter to receive a blow that left it momentarily offline, demonstrating, once again, the strength of the phenomenon.
But, leaving all this aside, the question is whether this type of solar storm means that Mars colonization plans are going to be interrupted. Scientists say that, in a way, there is no need to worry. It is obvious that, yes, it turns out an extremely high amount of radiation. Therefore, astronauts and colonists should not be exposed to it. If there was no other choice, it would be essential that the settlers were protected by the appropriate equipment. And, in the best of cases, they remember that the most convenient thing would be to have these types of lava tubes that would help to be protected from the adverse conditions of the planet.
They also talk about how the safety of the astronauts would not be the only thing to take into account. They remember that the solar storm would also affect crops disproportionately and that, although it may sound viable, grow in tubes or underground It’s not a good idea. Therefore, this type of phenomenon could cause terrible consequences and enormously affect the development of life on the planet.
In the coming days, new solar storms are expected to occur on Mars and scientists are waiting for them to be able to study them. They want to see the consequences, the levels and the impact, and make calculations about how frequent they might be. Based on all this, they will have more precise information about what humanity can expect to colonize the planet.
