On Mars, a partial eclipse of the sun isn’t quite as rare as on earth. So Nasa’s Mars Curiosity rover is snapping hundreds of pictures of the spectacle for the folks back home to ooh and aah over.
Two moons zip around the red planet and they’re closer and faster than our lumbering moon, so eclipses are more common. Scientists say there’s even somewhat of an eclipse season on Mars, and it’s that time of year when those Martian moons take turns taking bites of the sun.
Curiosity turned its cameras skyward to watch the action in three different eclipses, starting last week and continuing on Wednesday, when a moon partially slipped between Mars and the sun.
The rover has been beaming back a stream of photos of the Martian landscape since landing near the equator last month.
Texas A&M University scientist Mark Lemmon said the eclipse pictures will help scientists track the fate of the larger Martian moon, Phobos, which is slowing down in its orbit around Mars. In 10 to 15 million years, Phobos will get so close to Mars it will break up and crash into the planet.
These moons aren’t mere curiosity factors. They get so close to Mars that “they change Mars’ shape ever so slightly” with their pull, Lemmon said.