MarsSunset # Curiosity # WishYouWereHere

Earth ’s favorite Martian rover has sent back a arresting sundown photograph for its growing exposure record album . The image was take byNASA ’s Curiosity roveron its956th dayexploring Mars .

It seems that Mars and Earth are complete opposition when it comes to the semblance of the sky :   Earth has down sky by sidereal day and heater - colored sunsets , whereas Mars has rusty   orange to scandalmongering   sky by day and dusky blue   sunsets . It ’s the same sunlight that ’s illuminate both planets , so what ’s going on ?

It turns out that the result is down to the planet ' unlike atmospheres .

When sunlight shines on Earth , the element in the atm scatter blue spark in all directions , which is why we see a dismal - color   sky . The atmosphere has very minuscule effect on wavelength at the crimson end of the spectrum , so these wavelengths of light plow straight through the atmosphere . This is why we see the sunshine as yellow .

During an Earth sunset , red light careens directly through the atmosphere to our eyes , and blue spark is scattered away . When this happens , we can appreciate the warmer colors in the light spectrum .

cherry sky over Rock Spire in ' Spirit of St. Louis Crater ' on Mars adopt by Curiosity via NASA

On Mars , instead of an oxygen- and atomic number 7 - rich atm , there is a thin atmosphere fill with   fine rubble .

" The colors come in from the fact that the very fine dust is the veracious size so that blue luminousness bottom the ambiance more or less more efficiently,“Curiosityteam memberMark Lemmonsaid ina statement . " When the blue light source scattering off the detritus , it stays closer to the guidance of the sun than ignitor of other colors does . The rest of the sky is white-livered to orange , as yellow and violent brightness scatter all over the sky instead of being absorbed or staying tight to the Lord’s Day . "

you may watch a timelapse of the sundown that was taken over a period of 6 minutes and 51 seconds .

Timelapse of grim sunset on Mars taken by Curiosity , via NASA

These photo have helped NASA to analyze the erect statistical distribution of dust in the Martian atmospheric state . The photographs were take during a quiet in a sandstorm ;   however , there was still a peck of debris in the air .

For wishful thinker , these photograph have got them enquire what non-white sunsets other planet in the universe are experiencing .