The amateur astronomy community is abuzz over a strange phenomenon spotted over Mars last week. There are many reports of a "strange feature" over the Martian plain called Acidalia that moves with the planet and seems to rise over the limb.The discovery has professional astronomers taking note. NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft will try to image the cloud with a camera that can take pictures in visible and infrared light simultaneously NASA confirmed.
There are speculations from different quarters that the cloud might be a dust cloud from a meteorite impact, a massive storm system or just a trick of light.
A week ago, amateur astronomers were marveling over a curious cloud that they spotted on the Mars — and now the professionals are focusing in on an explanation. The cloud was intriguing because it was most noticeable along the very edge of the Martian disk, and seemed to project high into the atmosphere.
"It's most likely a condensate cloud/haze, H2O in composition," Bruce Cantor, senior staff scientist at Malin Space Science Systems, said in an email that was circulated to other experts. "Similar type of phenomena have been seen in early-morning orbital observations in the past."
The mystery cloud may be a transient feature — for example, morning clouds that dissipated by the afternoon on Mars. Yet, researchers are suspect of normal cloud activity, due to the large size of the phenomenon and apparent altitude.
Next time a rain on Mars!
