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Perseverance measures Martian dust relevant to crew protection

NASA’s Perseverance rover measured fine and ultrafine Martian dust on samples of spacesuit materials carried aboard the rover. The findings could inform spacesuit and habitat design, dust-removal procedures and health standards for future NASA missions to Mars.

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Updat3 graphic: NASA
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What happened

Key facts

  • The measured particles included fine and ultrafine dust, some small enough to penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream (per nasa.gov).
  • The findings could inform spacesuit and habitat design, dust-removal procedures and crew health standards for future NASA missions to Mars (per nasa.gov).

The brief

NASA’s Perseverance rover measured fine and ultrafine Martian dust clinging to samples of spacesuit materials carried aboard the rover, producing data that could help guide protections for future crews. NASA says some of the particles are small enough to penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream. The findings are due to be published Tuesday, Oct.

27, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The measurements span 1,645 Martian days. They cover dust collected on several material samples, with particle sizes varying by the surface examined. On PIXL’s Teflon target and SHERLOC’s Vectran swatch, particles averaged about 2 micrometers.

Other samples had smaller particles: dust on PIXL’s basaltic glass and SHERLOC’s Teflon swatch ranged down to about 100 to 300 nanometers. NASA’s account identifies the instruments and materials associated with those measurements, while describing the particles as fine and ultrafine dust.

NASA says the findings could inform the design of spacesuits and habitats, procedures for removing dust, and crew health standards for future NASA missions to Mars. The measurements therefore relate both to equipment and to the handling of dust during crew operations, as well as to health standards.

Lindsay Hays, acting director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said NASA has used existing data to address questions beyond those originally considered when the data were collected. She described the agency’s approach as turning challenges into workable solutions and finding creative uses for data.

A 360-degree panorama from Perseverance shows Neretva Vallis, described by NASA as a dusty, long-dried river channel cutting through the western rim of Jezero Crater. The panorama accompanies the account of the dust measurements.

NASA presents the results as information that could support planning for future missions, rather than as a report of a crewed mission or an established change to current standards.

Why it matters

  • NASA says some measured dust particles are small enough to penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream, making crew health standards one area the findings could inform.
  • The measurements distinguish among surfaces: particles averaged about 2 micrometers on two samples, while particles on two others ranged down to about 100 to 300 nanometers.
  • NASA identifies potential applications in spacesuit and habitat design, dust-removal procedures and crew health standards for future Mars missions.

What to watch next

  • Whether the findings appear in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Tuesday, Oct. 27, as NASA says they are scheduled to.
  • How NASA applies the measurements to spacesuit and habitat design for future Mars missions.
  • Whether NASA develops dust-removal procedures informed by the findings.
  • Whether the findings inform crew health standards for future NASA missions to Mars.

How it's being covered

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Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. Those efforts followed the Viking 1 and Viking 2 landings in 1976, which began sustained robotic study of the Martian surface and atmosphere.
    Background · from our historical context
  2. NASA’s Viking 1 lander touched down on Mars.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  3. A planet-wide dust storm reduced sunlight reaching NASA’s solar-powered Spirit and Opportunity rovers.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  4. NASA’s Phoenix lander detected perchlorate salts in Martian soil in 2008, adding a chemical hazard to concerns about dust exposure.
    Background · from our historical context
  5. NASA’s Human Research Roadmap identified health risks to address for crewed missions.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  6. A global dust storm preceded Opportunity’s loss of contact with NASA.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  7. NASA launched the Perseverance rover carrying the MEDA weather instrument suite.
    Background · compiled and fact-checked by Updat3
  8. NASA’s Perseverance rover landed in Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021, carrying the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA), a Spanish-led instrument suite that measures weather conditions, including airborne dust.
    Background · from our historical context

How we got here

NASA’s Perseverance rover landed in Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, 2021, carrying the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA), a Spanish-led instrument suite that measures weather conditions, including airborne dust.

Earlier NASA rovers had established that dust can affect both surface operations and equipment: a planet-wide storm in 2007 reduced sunlight reaching the solar-powered Spirit and Opportunity rovers, and a 2018 global dust storm preceded Opportunity’s loss of contact.

Original sources

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