The much awaited movie begins with a massive dust storm which leaves an astronaut stranded on Mars.
In response NASA has tried to explain certain facts and fiction of the Martian atmosphere in arecent blog post.
It seems these dusty storms can last for weeks and also cover continent sized areas.
The Martian atmosphere is merely 1 percent dense which is quite less in comparison to that of Earths atmosphere.
He also added: So things get blown, but its not with the same intensity.
He says:
I tried to make the book as accurate as I could.
Mars atmosphere is less than one percent of Earths.
So a 150-km/hour wind would feel like about a 1-km/hour wind does on Earth.
It wouldnt do any damage to anything.
Most people dont know how Martian dust storms work, that its not like being in a sandblaster.
Its just more dramatic that way.
So I just made that concession.
[shrugs and smiles] I know Im a liar.
I just … wanted that.
Smith says: If youve seen pictures of Curiosity after driving, its just filthy.
The dust coats everything and its gritty; it gets into mechanical things that move, like gears.
Anothermajor impact of Martian dust is seen on the solar panels.
Less sunlight means less energy created.
Thats a pretty accurate depiction of what large dust storms can do…
source: www.techworm.net
