5.0! InSight Detects "Upper-Limit" Mars-Quake -- In Redux, Of Summer 2021, On Barsoom.

[But first, to understand the whimsical nature of our graphic, check here for our prior installment on Marsquakes, and. . . Marvin.] As InSight's dust load on its solar arrays is approaching a critical "safe-mode" protocol, to conserve battery life, during the pending Barsoomian winter. . . NASA's JPL was lucky enough to capture the 5.0 rocker, just about a week ago -- before winter hiatus.

While such a quake would be moderate on Earth, Mars is a smaller globe, and so. . . a 5.0 probably is near the upper limit for what is possible, given the [exo-]geo-physics of its interior core. And, it may be that after this winter on Mars, InSight will not be able to power back up, fully -- to resume regular science observations. So in some ways, this may be her last harrah. We shall see -- here's the story:

. . .NASA’s InSight Mars lander has detected the largest quake ever observed on another planet: an estimated magnitude 5 temblor that occurred on May 4, 2022, the 1,222nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. This adds to the catalog of more than 1,313 quakes InSight has detected since landing on Mars in November 2018. The largest previously recorded quake was an estimated magnitude 4.2 detected Aug. 25, 2021. . . .

A magnitude 5 quake is a medium-size quake compared to those felt on Earth, but it’s close to the upper limit of what scientists hoped to see on Mars during InSight’s mission. The science team will need to study this new quake further before being able to provide details such as its location, the nature of its source, and what it might tell us about the interior of Mars. . . .

The large quake comes as InSight is facing new challenges with its solar panels, which power the mission. As InSight’s location on Mars enters winter, there’s more dust in the air, reducing available sunlight. On May 7, 2022, the lander’s available energy fell just below the limit that triggers safe mode, where the spacecraft suspends all but the most essential functions. This reaction is designed to protect the lander and may occur again as available power slowly decreases.

After the lander completed its prime mission at the end of 2020, meeting its original science goals, NASA extended the mission through December 2022. . . .

Onward; out into the warm sunshine. . . grinning, as tonight I will search the evening skies. . . "for a reddish coal. . . rising with a moan. . . ." And. . . that would be. . . Deja, on Barsoom (for at least one more year). Smile. . . .

नमस्ते