May 26, 2021 at 11:02 am
Many planets in the Solar System have atmospheres, and their clouds bring much joy to the scientists studying them, including Mars.
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One Martian cloud in particular has caught the attention of astronomer Jorge Hernández-Bernal and his team: a previously unnoticed, extremely long cloud that forms downwind of the Arsia Mons volcano.
This ‘Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud’ (AMEC) appears to develop every morning during the spring and summer seasons.
The Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud. Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/J. Cowart, CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO
Before dawn, a circular head of cloud, around 125km across, emerges over the western flank of the mountain, which then after sunrise extends rapidly westwards with the prevailing winds – moving at over 600km/h.