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What The Devil? NASA Captures Dust Swirls On Film
By Maia Weinstock
Staff Writer
posted: 04:03 pm ET
14 March 2000
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Hed Here Images taken by NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft have revealed new evidence of a fiendish martian phenomenon: dust devils. Scientists had long wondered whether dust devils were responsible for curious dark streaks common in close-up images of the Red Planet's exterior. Finally, Global Surveyor has caught one of the whirling little demons dead in its tracks. Akin to mini-tornadoes on Earth, dust devils on Mars are spiraling air columns that sweep up dust and debris. The new images, originally captured in December 1999, will help scientists decipher how air processes on Mars reshape the surface of the planet. "These things send shivers down my spine," said Malin Space Science Systems imaging expert Ken Edgett in a statement Monday. "This is the 'smoking gun' that explains the wild, sometimes twisted 'spaghetti' of dark streaks and trails we have been seeing. I get the feeling when I look at these pictures that something is 'moving.'" 
Mars Global Surveyor image of a dust devil in action. Dust devils are thought to be responsible for seasonal differences in brightness of Mars' surface. Scientists think the devils remove some of the planet's bright red dust in summer and spring, thus causing the surface to look darker. "Each little dust devil that runs across the landscape makes the surface in that region just a little bit darker," said Edgett. Interestingly, dust devils are not just a martian phenomenon: they can also be found on Earth. Occurring in dry areas such as deserts, they are formed as a result of rising warm air, and appear as tornado-like whirlwinds. On Mars, dust devils are relatively common. Global Surveyor has recently captured images of as many as ten devils whirling at a time.
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