Perseverance Rover Captures Rare Footage of Martian Dust Devil Consuming Another on Jezero Crater Rim

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover captured a rare event on January 25, 2025, documenting a Martian dust devil consuming a smaller one on the rim of Jezero Crater. The event was recorded by the rover's navigation camera during an imaging experiment aimed at understanding Martian atmospheric dynamics. The larger dust devil measured approximately 210 feet (65 meters) in width, while the smaller one was about 16 feet (5 meters) wide. Two additional dust devils were also observed in the background. Mark Lemmon, a Perseverance scientist at the Space Science Institute, noted that these convective vortices, or dust devils, play a role in Martian weather patterns by lifting dust and affecting visibility. Katie Stack Morgan, project scientist for the Perseverance rover at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, emphasized the importance of studying dust devils to understand atmospheric conditions, wind direction, and dust distribution. Dust devils are responsible for approximately half of the dust in the Martian atmosphere. Since its landing in 2021, Perseverance has frequently imaged dust devils, including recording the first sounds of one in September 2021. NASA's Viking orbiters first photographed Martian dust devils in the 1970s, with subsequent missions like Pathfinder, Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity also capturing images. Scientists monitor for dust devils to understand their behavior, as they typically last around 10 minutes. Perseverance's mission includes astrobiology research and caching samples for potential signs of ancient microbial life, contributing to NASA's Mars Sample Return Program in cooperation with ESA.