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Amateur Astronomer Spots Strange Cloud Formations On Mars

Posted by timothy on from the he-loves-it dept.

techfun89 writes "Mars has returned to our evening skies as it does every two years. This time it is getting even more attention and buzz than it normally would. Amateur astronomer Wayne Jaeschke of West Chester Pennsylvania noticed an unusual protrusion in the planet's southern hemisphere, preceding the sunrise terminator. Several things may have contributed to this strange 'cloud formation.' One possibility is a meteoric impact event, where dust was spewed up into the atmosphere. Another could be a major dust storm, which are typical on Mars. Of course, it could be something more mundane; that these observations were caused by a mere optical illusion via a type of glint that occurred due to having just the right combination of lighting and atmospheric conditions. Some suggest volcanic activity, though this is unlikely given it has been 20 to 200 million years since lava has flowed on Mars."

14 of 62 comments (clear)

  1. Poorly-written article by EmagGeek · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The linked article is fairly contradictory on several points. The glaring one is this:

    " It was first seen on the evening of March 20th. Jaeschke alerted the international Mars observing community about the odd "extension" at 190.5Â east, 43.7Â south, just before the area that rotates into daylight. The odd feature was visible in all color-filtered exposures from near-infrared to blue light. Jaeschke produced the animation below.

    The feature was also reportedly captured by other amateur astronomers over the past few nights. Some astronomers in Europe have seen it as far back as March 12th."

    So, it was NOT first seen on the 20th, but rather on the 12th in Europe, and the guy in West Chester is not the discoverer of it.

    1. Re:Poorly-written article by pooh666 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      At first I thought your post was just the standard ./ guy being picky, but yeah totaly agree. To me, even worst than the dates, I don't see a single thing about this guy's equipment or methods, to me in a "tech" article that would almost be first thing.

    2. Re:Poorly-written article by Roceh · · Score: 2

      This article http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/23/10831821-mysterious-cloud-spotted-on-mars says that it has 'since' been found in images going back to the 12th.

    3. Re:Poorly-written article by techno-vampire · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Once somethng new's been discovered, astronmers take another look at recent observations to see if they found it too. It's not at all uncommon to find images of it in photos taken before the official discovery. The discoverer isn't the first person to see it but the first person to recognize it as something new and report it.

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    4. Re:Poorly-written article by MacGyver2210 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Did you actually click the link and begin reading?

      From Jaeschke's website, it appears he is using a 14" Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope along with an imaging system that includes a Point Grey Research Flea3 monochrome CCD camera with Astrodon and Astronomik Diochroic filters.

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      If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits
    5. Re:Poorly-written article by amiga3D · · Score: 2

      Only if he was told to by the same people that told President Bush to invade Iraq.

  2. Meteorite impact? Dust storm? Optical illusion? by impaledsunset · · Score: 3, Funny

    Everyone knows that the cloud formation is caused by a rocket launch.

    1. Re:Meteorite impact? Dust storm? Optical illusion? by Belial6 · · Score: 4, Informative

      If it has been seen by different astronomers using different equipment, it is highly unlikely to be a problem on the earthbound equipment side of things.

    2. Re:Meteorite impact? Dust storm? Optical illusion? by capnkr · · Score: 3, Funny

      WTG Disney, with your "John Carter" movie viral marketing campaign. Impressive effort!

      --
      "...there are some things that can beat smartness and foresight. Awkwardness and stupidity can." ~ Mark Twain
  3. Upon closer inspection by Centurix · · Score: 2

    It looks like a weather balloon filled with swamp gas...

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  4. Re:A strange cloud formation can mean only one thi by ae1294 · · Score: 2

    ...invasion!

    So it has come to this...

  5. Perhaps K'Breel, leader of the Council... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Perhaps K'Breel, leader of the Council can enlighten us ?

  6. Re:Rovers to the Rescue by Sperbels · · Score: 2

    To the best of my knowledge, we don't have any working probes on or around Mars at this time

    Not even close. Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and Mars Express are all still operating in orbit. The Opportunity rover is still functioning on the surface, but I suspect it's nowhere near the cloud.

  7. Dust storm? Don't think so. by mbone · · Score: 3, Insightful

    When Mariner 9 (and 2 Soviet Mars orbiters) the planet was having the worst dust storm in decades. The entire surface was basically invisible from orbit, which hasn't happened since.

    The reason I bring this is up is that this storm did not reach above the atmosphere. It was observed from Earth, but caused nothing like the pictures of the recent event - and that was more or less the biggest storm ever seen. So, if this is real, I don't think it's a dust storm.