Equipped with advanced scientific equipment, InSight spacecraft began to send daily weather reports from the Red Planet. InSight is discovery vehicle launched to Mars last November by American National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
According to information in the Hardware News, one of NASA’s mission in InSight is to examine the tectonic structure of Mars. InSight placed an advanced seismometer on the planet’s surface last December 2018. This seismometer is so sensitive that even wind breeze on the planet can cause measurement errors. That’s why NASA scientists want to constantly measure the weather on the Red Planet.
Daily reports published on NASA’s website show air temperatures, wind speeds and atmospheric pressure. The data is from Elysium Planitia, InSight’s landing zone. NASA, the data began to publish on February 11.
For example, on February 14, the average temperature in Mars was recorded as -64 degrees Celsius. The minimum temperature is -95 degrees and the maximum is -15 degrees. Wind speeds have reached a maximum of 60 kilometers per hour. Finally, the average atmospheric pressure is 721.7 pascal.
NASA researcher Don Banfield, who is responsible for the meteorological sensors of the InSight mission, said: “The InSight observation vehicle is very close to the Mars equator. So InSight’s landing zone is now dominated by winter.”
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