Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer
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The Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) is an instrument on board the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover designed to characterize dust size and morphology, as well as surface weather. This information is intended to inform future human exploration objectives, as dust sizes and shapes, daily weather reports, and information on radiation and wind patterns on Mars are critical for proper design of in situ resource utilization systems. MEDA is a follow-on project from REMS of the Curiosity rover mission, with a larger scope.
The instrument suite was developed and provided by the Spanish Astrobiology Center at the Spanish National Research Council in Madrid, Spain. On April 8, 2021, NASA reported the first MEDA weather report on Mars: for April 3–4, 2021, the high was "minus-7.6 degrees, and a low of minus-117.4 degrees ... [winds] gusting to ... 22 mph".
Scientific team members
The Principal Investigator is José Antonio Rodríguez Manfredi and the Deputy Principal Investigator is Manuel de la Torre Juarez (JPL-NASA).
List of coinvestigators and their affiliations:
| Nathan Bridges Johns Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory Laurel, Maryland | Olga Prieto-Ballesteros Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial Madrid, Spain | Pamela Conrad NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland |
| Miguel Ramos Universidad de Alcala de Henares Madrid, Spain | Javier Gomez-Elvira Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial Madrid, Spain | Alfonso Saiz-Lopez Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas Instituto de Quimica Fisica Rocasolano Madrid, Spain |
| Felipe Gomez-Gomez Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial Madrid, Spain | Agustin Sanchez-Lavega Universidad del Pais Vasco UPV/EHU Bilbao, Biscay, Spain | Ari-Matti Harri Ilmatieteen Laitos Helsinki, Finland |
| John SchofieldNASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Pasadena, California | Mark LemmonTexas A & M College Station, Texas | Eduardo Sebastian Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial Madrid, Spain |
| German Martinez University of Michigan Ann Arbor, Michigan | Michael Smith NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland | Sara Navarro Lopez Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial Madrid, Spain |
| Leslie Tamppari NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Pasadena, California | Claire Newman Aeolis Research Pasadena, California |
Overview
Dust dominates Mars' weather the way that water dominates Earth's weather. Martian weather cannot be predicted unless dust behavior is studied and understood in the weather context. MEDA is a suite of environmental sensors designed to record dust optical properties and six atmospheric parameters: wind speed/direction, pressure, relative humidity, air temperature, ground temperature, and radiation (UV, visible, and IR ranges of the spectrum).
The technology used on MEDA was inherited from the REMS package operating on the Curiosity rover and the TWINS package on InSight lander. The sensors are located on the rover's mast and on the deck, front and interior of the rover's body. It records data whether the rover is active or not, at both day and night. The instruments will collect data for 5 minutes every 30 minutes.[needs update]
| Parameter | Performance/units |
|---|---|
| Mass | 5.5 kg (12 lb) |
| Power | Max 17 watts |
| Data return | ≈11 megabytes |
| Temperature | accuracy: 5 K resolution: 0.1 K |
| Relative humidity | accuracy of 10% in the 200-323 K range |
| Pressure | Range: 1 to 1150 Pa accuracy: 20 Pa resolution: 0.5 Pa |
| Radiation | eight upward looking photodiodes: • 255 +/– 5 nm for the O3 • 295 +/– 5 nm for the O3 • 250–400 nm for total UV • 450±40 nm for MastCam-Z cross-calibration • 650 +/– 25 nm for SuperCam cross-calibration • 880 +/–5 nm for MastCam-Z cross-calibration • 950 +/– 50 nm for NIR • one panchromatic (300-1000 nm) filter |
| Wind | accuracy: 2 m/sec resolution: 0.5 m/sec |
Components
See also
- Martian soil (aka regolith)
- Atmosphere of Mars
- Materials Adherence Experiment (1996 Mars dust experiment on Mars Pathfinder)