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MAVEN Detects Unexpected Aurora on Mars

Science Spotlights

MAVEN Detects Unexpected Aurora on Mars

MAVEN observed what scientists have named “Christmas lights”. For five days just before Christmas 2014, MAVEN’s IUVS saw a bright ultraviolet auroral glow spanning Mars’ northern hemisphere. The diffuse glow is distributed throughout the northern hemisphere and, unlike previous measurements of aurora on Mars, had no connection to magnetic anomalies.

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