NASA’s InSight Rover Experiences Marsquake For Over 90 Minutes; Is Colonizing Mars Wise?

Earthquakes are one of the regular occurrences and some hardly get noticed. However, massive Earthquakes can jolt through lives and properties. On the other hand, Earth isn't the only planet that gets such massive quakes. Planets like Mars also experience powerful quakes, called Marsquake. Recently, NASA's InSight rover just experienced a powerful Marsquake.

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NASA InSight Experiences Marsquake

The InSight lander detected one of the powerful and long-lasting quakes on the Martian surface since the start of its mission. The temblor is estimated to be about a magnitude 4.2 and went on for one-and-a-half-hour, which is simply unthinkable. Earthquakes back home hardly last a few seconds or maximum for a few minutes, which results in mass destruction.

Going into the details, the Marsquake occurred on September 18, which coincided with InSight's 1000th day since it landed on Mars. Here, the quake came right after two other big quakes that happened on August 25 (Earth date) and recorded a magnitude of 4.2 and 4.1. Previously, the InSight rover detected a quake of 3.7 in 2019, which was considered to be massive.

I caught one of the biggest and most distant #marsquakes yet—about magnitude 4.2—this past Saturday. A great way to celebrate my 1,000th sol/day on Mars. All thanks to my team for working to keep my solar panels clear enough so I could keep going.

More: https://t.co/WUd0QAHhys

— NASA InSight (@NASAInSight) September 22, 2021

Scientists Study Marsquake Date From InSight

Presently, scientists are still examining the data on this particular Marsquake. The data gathered from InSight will aim to better understand why or how the rover was able to endure the powerful quake that lasted for such a long time. Plus, they'll also be able to determine how far away InSight was from the epicenter of the quake.

Scientists say the August 25 Marsquakes recorded a magnitude of 4.2. At that time, the InSight rover was about 5,280 miles or 8,500 Kms away. This particular quake was the most distant temblor the lander has detected so far. The latest Marsquake will further throw light upon these celestial events on the Red Planet.

Marsquakes: Is Colonizing Mars Wise?

The movie Martian showed us a lot about how it would be up on Mars, including such massive tremors and other celestial occurrences. Presently, NASA has major plans to send people to Mars to better understand it. Moreover, Elon Musk wants to colonize the Red Planet. However, such massive jolts for such prolonged periods make it quite a scare to settle on Mars.

This is also why previous scientific research and experiments are quite important. NASA InSight rover is geared with the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure or SEIS. This helps the rover to detect and study seismic waves as they rumble through the Red Planet's crust, mantle, and core. The findings help scientists and astronauts to better understand Mars and learn more about it before heading there.