Many planets including Earth have nightglow, but MAVEN is the first mission to collect so many images of another planet’s nightglow. It turns out that solar wind may not be the only culprit behind Mars' thinned atmosphere.

Scientists will use MAVEN data to determine the role that loss of volatiles from the Mars atmosphere to space has played through time, giving insight into the history of Mars' atmosphere and climate, liquid water, and planetary habitability. Three nightglow brightenings occur over one Mars rotation, the first much brighter than the other two. MAVEN is the first mission dedicated to studying Mars’ upper atmosphere; Key Dates. The red planet could provide insight into how the atmospheres are stripped off of distant, comet-like exoplanets. Global circulation patterns carry the atomic fragments to the nightside, where downward winds increase the reaction rate for the atoms to reform molecules. However, IUVS is a next-generation instrument better able to repeatedly map out the nightside glow, finding patterns and periodic behaviors. The nightglow was measured at about 70 kilometers (approximately 40 miles) altitude by the Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph instrument on NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft. Applause roared up from the control rooms.The Centaur is far behind the scientific spacecraft and getting farther behind. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission is part of NASA's Mars Scout program, funded by NASA Headquarters. Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) is a spacecraft developed by NASA to investigate the upper atmosphere and ionosphere of Mars and how the solar wind strips volatile compounds from this atmosphere. Visit our corporate site. Gérard, A. Stiepen, J. Deighan, A. I. F. Stewart, F. Forget, F. Lefèvre and S. W. Bougher, 5 August 2020, JGR Space Physics. There was a problem. NASA is exploring our Solar System and beyond, uncovering worlds, stars, and cosmic mysteries near and far with our powerful fleet of space and ground-based missions. The MAVEN (short for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) probe will investigate the Red Planet's thin atmosphere, searching for signs of how the planet became what it is today. The orbiter also relays communications between surface missions and Earth. The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying the 5,400-pound spacecraft lifted off at 1:28 p.m. EST, the mission's first opportunity. If provided, your email will not be published or shared. All three brightenings occur shortly after sunset, appearing on the left of this view of the night side of the planet. TOPICS: Atmospheric Science Mars MAVEN NASA NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Popular.