--- title: "Scientists Release Audio of NASA Rover Getting Swallowed by a 387 Foot Dust Devil On Mars" description: "With hard work and a good luck, scientists have clinched the first ever audio recording of a dust devil on Mars, helping solve mysteries of its atmosphere." date: "2022-12-14" modified: "2022-12-14" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/audio-nasa-rover-dust-devil" categories: - "Astronomy" - "Mars" - "NASA" - "Space" tags: - "mars" - "NASA" - "perseverance" - "the digest" --- # Scientists Release Audio of NASA Rover Getting Swallowed by a 387 Foot Dust Devil On Mars ![With hard work and a good luck, scientists have clinched the first ever audio recording of a dust devil on Mars, helping solve mysteries of its atmosphere.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Sonic Sleuth As an imposing dust devil rattled NASA's Perseverance rover on Mars, its onboard SuperCam microphone was kept hot, producing the [first ever sound recording]() of the fascinating yet little understood weather phenomenon on the Red Planet. That's cool on its own, but the recording in conjunction with other measurements taken at the time — like of pressure and temperature, not to mention photos — are more than just neat collectibles, and afford scientists a wealth of unprecedented insights into the Martian atmosphere, which they've published as a new [study]() in the journal *Nature Communications*. "Within the team, we always knew that a microphone on Mars would be an important instrument for studying the Martian atmosphere and dust devils were one of the phenomena that we hoped to observe one day," study lead author Naomi Murdoch, a planetary scientist at the National Higher French Institute of Aeronautics and Space, [told *Vice*]()*.* "However, to actually observe one is not simple; it requires careful planning and also good luck." "There is only a 1 in 200 chance to detect such a dust devil with a single microphone recording in the mid-day period!" Murdoch added. https://youtu.be/bheyhn5jGPQ ## Weathering the Storm Evidently, fortune has favored Murdoch's team. So fruitful were the measurements that the scientists say they were able to accurately count every particle of dust that struck the rover. In addition, they were also able to calculate the dust devil's speed of 17 feet per second, as well as its towering dimensions: around 82 feet wide and *at least* 387 feet tall, according to the study, enough to rival small skyscrapers. You'd think that might be risky for a rover — and it is, to some extent — but thanks to Mars' rarefied atmosphere, which isn't even one percent as dense as Earth's, the vortex didn't pack much of a punch either, leaving Percy undamaged. ## Lift Off All this, simply put, is a big deal. According to Murdoch, scientists still don't understand how dust devils are formed on Mars, or more specifically, how dust is lifted off the ground. The findings here could change that, but they've proved just as illuminating as they are perplexing. The eye of the vortex should be calmer than its windy walls, but the scientists observed a surprising amount of impacts while the rover was in its center. "This particular dust devil is unusual even for Mars," Murdoch [told *Space.com*](). "We aren't entirely sure why the dust has accumulated in the center, but it may be because the dust devil is still in its initial phase of formation." Mysteries still linger, but at least one thing is crystal clear to Murdoch: don't underestimate the value of microphones and acoustic data when it comes to exploring planets. **More on Mars:** *[Scientist Proposes Growing a Forest Inside a Bubble on Mars]()* ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()