Meteoroid Impact on Mars

Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with NASA’s Universe of Learning partners: Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

 

Video imagery:

·       MRO HiRISE data animation of Mars crater in Amazonis Planitia: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

·       MRO Context Camera images of Amazonis Planitia before and after meteoroid impact: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

·       MRO HiRISE image of impact crater formed on Dec. 24, 2021: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

Writer: Leah Ramsay

Designer: Leah Hustak

Science review: Dr. Emma Marcucci

Education review: Jim Manning

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Images of galaxies, nebulae, planets, and stars in space.

 

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Text, News From The Universe.

 

November 2, 2022. Meteoroid Impact on Mars. Data Animation. Scientists confirmed the cause of a magnitude 4 marsquake detected by NASA's InSight lander on December 24, 2021: a meteoroid impact.

 

A rotating image of rocky red ground with a crater in it. The edges around the crater are raised.

 

Text, Images from NASA's Reconnaissance Orbiter confirmed a new crater at the quake epicenter. Before Impact. A gray surface with texture. Text, After Impact. The same gray surface with black debris moving outward from a circular impact point. The crater from above with its diameter marked. Text, 490 feet, 150 meters. The crater is likely the largest ever witnessed forming anywhere in the Solar System. The impact threw out boulder-size chunks of ice. Buried ice has never been spotted this close to the Martian equator.

 

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Splotches of white next to the crater

 

Text, Martian water ice would be an important resource for future human missions to Mars. This news was brought to you in part by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.