A new study conducted by researchers at the Bristol University uncovered insights into the liquid core of the red planet, furthering understanding its formation and evolution.
According to PA media, the research also reveals the first detections of sound waves traveling into the Martian core, finding that it is slightly denser than previously thought.
Measurements from this acoustic energy, called seismic waves, also indicate the core is smaller than previously thought, and comprises a mixture of iron and numerous other elements.
Researchers say the findings are all the more remarkable, as the mission was initially only scheduled to last for a little over one Mars year (two Earth years).
Despite Martian storms speeding up the accumulation of dust and reducing power to the Nasa InSight Mars lander, the space agency extended its stay, so geophysical data, including signals of marsquakes, continued to be gathered until the end of last year.
Lead author Dr. Jessica Irving, senior lecturer in earth sciences at the University of Bristol, said: “The extra mission time certainly paid off. We’ve made the very first observations of seismic waves traveling through the core of Mars.”
“Two seismic signals, one from a very distant marsquake and one from a meteorite impact on the far side of the planet, have allowed us to probe the Martian core with seismic waves. We’ve effectively been listening for energy traveling through the heart of another planet, and now we’ve heard it,” she added.
“These first measurements of the elastic properties of Mars’ core have helped us investigate its composition. Rather than being just a ball of iron, it also contains a large amount of sulfur, as well as other elements including a small amount of hydrogen,” she explained.
The study, led by University of Bristol researchers, used data from Nasa’s InSight lander, a robotic spacecraft designed to probe the interior of Mars, to compare seismic waves traveling through the planet’s core with those transiting Mars’ shallower regions.
In 2018, the lander deployed a broadband seismometer on the Martian surface allowing for the detection of seismic events, including marsquakes and meteorite impacts.
