The US space agency, NASA, documented a strange sound on Mars, which turned out to be a giant meteorite that was swimming in the planet’s atmosphere, before crashing on its surface.
According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the recording combines “seismic and acoustic waves” that were detected when a space rock hit Mars on September 5, 2021.
The sound lasts only about 3 seconds, and begins with the sound of a rock flying in the sky, and ends with “beats”.
“This was the first time that the sound of a meteorite impact on another planet has been captured, and that may not be what we expect,” the lab says.
The lab explains the nature of the sound that you will hear “three hits, representing distinct moments of impact,” and explains that the meteor enters the Martian atmosphere, then explodes into pieces, after which it collides with the Earth.
The strange sound is caused by an atmospheric effect also observed in deserts on Earth, where low-pitched sounds arrive before high-pitched sounds, according to the lab.
Astronomers comment that the meteorite, a term referring to space rocks before they hit Earth, exploded into at least three pieces, leaving three distinct craters.
NASA says its InSight lander picked up the seismic waves, and the agency’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter flew over the impact site, photographing “three dark spots on the surface.”
Listen????
These “bloops” are the sound of a meteoroid impact on Mars – the first time it has ever been recorded! @NASAInSight’s seismometer picked up the peculiar noise, which is caused by an atmospheric effect. https://t.co/U32ErMoyMJ https://t.co/BV769TiboZ— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) September 19, 2022