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24: Series 5
In association with Amazon.co.uk £26.97 |
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Contents
 Larger dust devils
Smaller dust devils
Electrical activities
Martian dust devils
Larger dust devils - Contents
 Dust devil in the Suez Canal, Egypt
The larger dust devils are often observed in times of atmospheric turbulence, especially common in the San Luis Valley of Colorado. Depending on the classification system used they may be considered weak tornados or landspouts. They are visible in the Great Basin and eastward to El Paso, for example. They are distinct from the common dust storms of this area, because they resemble small tornados. Due to this they are best viewed from a distance, and at a height (say, from a mountaintop). These whirlwinds are not extremely hazardous to biological organisms, but machines and electronics can suffer many severe malfunctions through repeated exposure to dust devil activity, including but not limited to increased wear from dust and short circuits or other physical damage caused by electrical arcing.
Smaller dust devils - Contents
The smaller dust devils reach only a few meters or tens of meters in height, forming commonly in hot dry weather, most observably in fields or dusty flats, where the soil makes them visible, and which may be shorter-lived.
Electrical activities - Contents
It was recently found that even small dust devils (on Earth) can produce radio noise and electrical fields greater than 10,000 volts per meter. [1]
Martian dust devils - Contents
 A dust devil on Mars, photographed by Mars Global Surveyor. The long dark streak is formed by a moving swirling column of Martian atmosphere. The dust devil itself (the black spot) is climbing the crater wall. The streaks on the right are sand dunes on the crater floor.
Dust devils also occur on Mars, and were first photographed by the Viking orbiters in the 1970s. In 1997, the Mars Pathfinder lander detected a dust devil passing over it. [2] Martian dust devils can be up to fifty times as wide and ten times as high as terrestrial dust devils, and large ones may pose a threat to terrestrial technology sent to Mars. [3]Mission members monitoring the Spirit rover on Mars reported March 12, 2005 that a lucky encounter with a dust devil has cleaned the solar panels of that robot. Power levels have dramatically increased and daily science work is anticipated to be expanded. (space.com) A similar phenomenon (solar panels mysteriously cleaned of accumulated dust) had previously been observed with the Opportunity rover, and dust devils had also been suspected as the cause.A large-scale cyclone has also been observed on Mars.
 Dust devil on Mars, photographed by the Mars rover Spirit
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