Dust Surrounding Mars Detected by MAVEN

Abstract

Mars is one of the most extensively explored planet in our solar system. However, previous research on the dust environment surrounding Mars remains quite limited. We used the method of detecting signals generated by high-speed dust impacts on the spacecraft and filtered out over 86000 dust impact events from the burst mode data recorded by the Langmuir Probe and Wave instrument (LPW) payload of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft during the period from October 2014 to November 2022. This direct detection method for dust particles has a large effective observational area, allowing for the observation of space environment with low dust number density. Through calculations, we discovered a complex dust environment around Mars. We analyzed three potential sources: interplanetary dust, dust released by Martian moons, and the dust that transported from the Martian surface. We observed a significant increase in dust impact signal detection rates near the orbital altitude of Phobos. This could be the first effective observation proving that the moon of Mars is releasing dust. Additionally, we found correlations between Martian global dust storm event in Martian Year 34 and the variation of dust in Martian space environment. This may suggest that Martian dust storms are capable of lifting dust particles from the surface to high altitudes previously unanticipated. Our findings can help to understand the sources of interplanetary dust within the solar system and the ways in which Martian dust storms influence Mars' atmosphere and space environment.