Pieris and her colleagues studied weather data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), which has been observing the Red Planet since 2006. Specifically, they examined temperature patterns captured by the Mars Climate Sounder, an instrument designed to track atmospheric conditions.

In a new study, planetary scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder have begun to unravel the factors that kick off major dust storms on Mars—weather events that sometimes engulf the entire planet in swirling grit.

Windy with a chance of catastrophic dust storms blotting out the sky.In a new study, planetary scientists at the

Windy with a chance of catastrophic dust storms blotting out the sky. In a new study, planetary scientists at CU Boulder have begun to unravel the factors that ki

Dust storms are one of Mars' natural wonders, and also one of its greatest hazards. They begin on small scales, but some can blow up into global storms that enshroud the Red Plane

The other worldly storms threaten missions to Mars as the dust sticks onto the surface of robotic explorers of the Red Planet, sometimes leading to their untimely deaths. A team of planetary scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder may have figured out the factors that lead to a giant dust storm on Mars,