Researchers have found evidence of gigantic waves of sand, often referred to as megaripples, slowly moving around on the surface of Mars, as Science reports.
Megaripples arent unique to Mars; they can be found in deserts back here on Earth as well. But the Red Planets colossal sand dunes, believed to have formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, could be a sign that winds on Mars are even stronger than previously believed.
In a paper published last month in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, the team suggests that megaripples may be migrating thanks to small grains of sand knocking into larger grains, dragging them into motion.
The new research goes against current atmospheric models that largely suggest winds couldnt be strong on Mars enough to move these mega sand structures. In other words, a thin atmosphere may allow for surprisingly strong winds.
Using images taken by NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, the international team of scientists had a closer look. By focusing on two sites near the Martian equator, they analyzed a total of 1,100 megaripples.
Scientists previously believed that these megaripples on the Red Planet were first formed a long time ago, when a thicker atmosphere allowed for much heavier winds, and were now stationary.
But to their astonishment, they found that the megaripples do in fact appear to move albeit at the slow paceof roughly 10 centimeters per Earth year. According to Science, thats about as fast as megaripples in the Lut Desert in Iran.
The surprising takeaway: Winds could be strong enough after all, despite the thin Martian atmosphere. A past climate with a denser atmosphere is not necessary to explain their accumulation and migration, the team concluded in their paper.
And thats bad news for future astronauts visiting the Red Planet, as windy conditions could end up messing with habitats and solar panels.
Nonetheless, its an astonishing new discovery about our planetary neighbor.
We can now measure processes on the surface of another planet that are just a couple times faster than our hair grows, Ralph Lorenz, a planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, who was not involved in the study, told Science.
READ MORE: Giant waves of sand are moving on Mars [Science]
More on Mars: NASAs Next Rover Will Bring First-Ever Microphone to Mars
The rest is here:
Astronomers Say "Megaripples" Are Moving Across the Surface of Mars - Futurism
- The G-Bound RC Car Drives On Water [Rc] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Nanoparticles Can Rip Your DNA Apart Without Ever Touching It [Nanoparticles] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- My Favorite Top 10 List Today: The Dumbest Evil Geniuses Of All Time [Evil Geniuses] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- 5,000 Volts Is More Than Enough Power To Crush a Soda Can [DIY] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Computers Are Scary, But Steve Allen Is Here to Help [Retromodo] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Pangolin Backpack [Bags] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- New For iPhone: 2 Balls 1 Cup [IPhone Apps] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Office Building Or Home To A Super Heroine? [Architecture] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- This Inflating Bra Commercial Left Me Confused Yet Reaching For My Wallet [Nsfw] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- 10 Terrible Tips for Longer Battery Life [Humor] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Dealzmodo: $100 Xbox 360 at Amazon, More Electronics Deals All Day Long [Dealzmodo] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Gigabyte BIOS Update Fixes iPhone Syncing Issues [IPhone] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Hello Facebook User, I'm a Nigerian Prince in Need of Assistance... [Facebook] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Zune HD Update 4.3: Speedier Browser, Predictive Text and More [Zune Hd] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- 8-Bit Wedding Invitation Acknowledges the Marital Bickering to Come [8-Bit Wedding] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- The iPhone Nano Rumor Strikes Again: Coming to Verizon in 2010? [Rumor] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Building a NAS? Skip the Performance Drives [Nas] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Microsoft COFEE, Some of the Most Illegal Software You Can Pirate [Hacking] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Robot Cow Rectum: For Educational, not Recreational, Purposes [Robots] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Watch Jonathan Ive's Segment in Objectified [Apple] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- BlueBeat’s Innovative Defense That Will Never Hold Up in Court [Music] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Nokia Booklet 3G Landing November 15 at Best Buy [Nokia] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- Latest Snow Leopard Developer Build Breaks Hackintosh Support... Again [Hackintosh] [Last Updated On: November 7th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 7th, 2009]
- The Cité du Design Certainly Lives Up to Its Name [Architecture] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- 64% of Men Don’t RTFM Before Calling Tech Support [Tech Support] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- MIT Media Lab: Electronic Wallpaper, Conductive Threads and More [Fashion] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Famous Paintings Reproduced In Coffee [Art] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- How Far Can 'Medical Tourism' Go? [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Actuarial Escape Velocity [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- A Rebuttal to 'Peak Oil' Doomsday Predictions [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Reverend Jeremiah White,...I mean, Wright [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Energy vs. Financials, A Divergence of Historical Extremes [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- US Ideological Distribution, 2008 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Ten Biotechnology Breakthroughs Soon to be Available [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Nanohealing Material Heads to Market [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Solar Revolution is Near [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Why the US Will Still be the Only Superpower in 2030, v2.0 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Culture of Happiness [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Surfaces : The Next Killer Ap in Computing [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- More on the Economics of Medical Tourism [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Ten Myths in America [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Can Buildings be 'Printed'? [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Pre-Singularity Abundance Milestones [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Futurist's Stock Portfolio for 2009 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- A Future Timeline for Economics [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- A History of Stock Market Bottoms [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- A Few Electoral Statistics [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- It's Official : The Recession Began in December 2007 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- How We Decisively WON in Iraq in 2008 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- 2008 Technology Breakthrough Roundup [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Futurist's Stock Portfolio for 2008 - RESULTS [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Why Government is Set to Extinguish Silicon Valley [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Solar Power's Next 5 Game-Changing Technologies [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The End of Rabbit Ears, a Billion more Broadband Users - Part II [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Guantanamo Meets Geneva Convention Rules [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Nanotechnology : Bubble, Bust, ....Boom? [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Form of Economic Recovery [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Impact of Computing : 78% More per Year, v2.0 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Wolfram Alpha : The Birth of Web 3.0 [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Energy vs. Financials, RESULTS [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- SETI and the Singularity [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Eight Ways to Supercharge the US Economy [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Next Big Thing in Entertainment, A Half-Time Update [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Video Conferencing : A Cascade of Disruptions [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Timing the Singularity [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Mobile Broadband Surge : A Prediction Follow Up [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Next Two US Recessions [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Google Promotes Droid Day With Rare Homepage Ad [Google] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Microsoft Confirms Improved Xbox 360 Warranty Seal [Blockquote] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- OpenOfficeMouse Is An 18 Button Freak, But I Want It [Mouse] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- 10 Classic Analog Games Defiled By Digital [Tgif] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Wire Your House With Ethernet Cable For Better Home Networking [DIY] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Next Room Eavesdropping Device Is Way Better Than a Drinking Glass [Surveillance] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Steve Jobs and Sarah Jessica Parker Sittin' In A Courthouse B-E-I-N-G S-U-E-D [Lawsuits] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Folding Titanium Spork Is the Ultimate Portable Eating Utensil [Spork] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- The Queen of Google: "I Do Code All Night!" [Google] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- This Week's Best iPhone Apps [IPhone Apps] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- DIY Star Trek Bluetooth Communicator Almost Makes Regular Bluetooth Headsets Look Stylish [DIY] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- Intel Swears That It's Gonna Stop Its Firmware From Bricking Any More SSDs [Intel] [Last Updated On: November 8th, 2009] [Originally Added On: November 8th, 2009]
- H20 Audio's Waterproof iPod Nano Case Is Built for Surfer-Videographers [Accessories] [Last Updated On: December 12th, 2009] [Originally Added On: December 12th, 2009]