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Home
About
Science Team
Principal Investigator
Institutional Partners
Meet the MAVENites
Spacecraft
Mission Timeline
FAQs
Science
Science Orbit
Instruments
Solar Wind Electron Analyzer (SWEA)
Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA)
Suprathermal and Thermal Ion Composition (STATIC)
Solar Energetic Particle (SEP)
Langmuir Probe and Waves (LPW)
Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Monitor
Magnetometer (MAG)
Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS)
IUVS Imaging Highlights
Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS)
Radio Occultation Science Experiment (ROSE)
Released Results
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Science Data Center
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For Educators
MAVEN Educator Ambassador Project
Red Planet: Read, Write, Explore!
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Invisible Mars: Science On a Sphere
Imagine Mars through Native Eyes
Girls Go to Mars
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2015 New Media Professional Development Workshop
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Comet Put Magnesium and Iron into Martian Atmosphere
Comet Put Magnesium and Iron into Martian Atmosphere
The places where the red line on this graph extends higher than the blue line show detection of metals added to the Martian atmosphere from dust particles released by a passing comet. The graphed data are from the Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) on NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft, which recorded the intensities of emission by ingredients in the Martian atmosphere just before (blue line) and after (red line) comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring sped within about 87,000 miles (139,500 kilometers) of Mars on Oct. 19, 2014. The “before” line records the usual main gases in the atmosphere, primarily carbon dioxide and its byproducts. The “after” line includes those plus peaks at 280 nanometer wavelength — a fingerprint of ionized magnesium — and other wavelengths that are fingerprints of iron. Researchers interpret this change as a result of vaporization of dust particles that came from the comet and entered the Martian atmosphere at high speed. IUVS uses limb scans to map the chemical makeup and vertical structure across Mars’ upper atmosphere. (Courtesy NASA/University of Colorado Boulder/LASP)
Main Menu
Home
About
Science Team
Principal Investigator
Institutional Partners
Meet the MAVENites
Spacecraft
Mission Timeline
FAQs
Science
Science Orbit
Instruments
Solar Wind Electron Analyzer (SWEA)
Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA)
Suprathermal and Thermal Ion Composition (STATIC)
Solar Energetic Particle (SEP)
Langmuir Probe and Waves (LPW)
Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) Monitor
Magnetometer (MAG)
Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS)
IUVS Imaging Highlights
Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS)
Radio Occultation Science Experiment (ROSE)
Released Results
Publications
Science Data Center
MAVEN Science Spotlights
Space Weather
Education & Outreach
For Educators
MAVEN Educator Ambassador Project
Red Planet: Read, Write, Explore!
Afterschool & Summer Programs
Invisible Mars: Science On a Sphere
Imagine Mars through Native Eyes
Girls Go to Mars
Public Outreach
MAVEN Outreach Webinars
New Media Professional Development
2015 New Media Professional Development Workshop
MAVEN Space Valentines 2022
Going to Mars campaign
Message to Mars contest
Educator recognition selections
Student art contest
About the first-place entry
School-based awards
Multimedia
Spacecraft Images
Team Images
Videos
News & Events
Team Blog
MAVEN in the News
Events
Media Contacts