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3w ago

NASA’s Perseverance Captures Rare Dust Devil Interaction on Mars

A newly released video shows a larger Martian dust devil consuming a smaller one, offering fresh insights into the planet’s dynamic atmosphere.

NASA's Perseverance rover spots a large dust devil on Mars swallowing another smaller dust devil in images recorded on Jan. 25, 2025.
Screengrabs of new footage from NASA's Perseverance Rover, capturing dust devils on Mars.
Image
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/LANL/CNES/CNRS/INTA-CSIC/Space Science Institute/ISAE-Supaero/University of Arizona

Overview

  • NASA released a video on April 3, 2025, showing a larger dust devil, approximately 210 feet wide, consuming a smaller 16-foot-wide dust devil on Mars' Jezero Crater rim.
  • The Perseverance rover captured the event on January 25, 2025, during an imaging experiment to study Martian atmospheric dynamics.
  • Two additional dust devils were observed in the background, highlighting the complex and active nature of Mars' weather systems.
  • Dust devils play a critical role in Martian weather, contributing roughly half of the dust in the atmosphere and providing data on wind patterns and surface-atmosphere interactions.
  • The Perseverance rover continues its mission to explore the Jezero Crater rim, collect rock samples, and refine climate models as part of NASA's broader Mars exploration goals.