[Epoch Times April 04, 2022](Epoch Times reporter Di Rui compiled and reported) Using the microphones on the Mars rover Perseverance, scientists figured out how fast sound travels on Mars. It turned out that the speed of sound on Mars is quite low.
A team of scientists presented their findings at this year’s 53rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, phys.org reported. They found that different frequencies of sound travel at different speeds on Mars, which means that if people were talking face to face on Mars, the other party would not be able to hear them clearly, because different frequencies travel at different speeds, and people’s conversations would sound chaotic of.
The microphones on the Perseverance rover are not equipped to measure the speed of sound on Mars, but to record the pressure changes created when the rover burns rocks with lasers. Burning rocks with infrared lasers is one of Perseverance’s exploration missions on Mars. Scientists analyze the composition and structure of rocks on Mars through the composition of gasification after burning. The recorded sound files have been sent back to Earth and posted on the web page of NASA’s rover project.
On a whim, a team of scientists calculated the speed of sound on Mars based on the time difference between when the laser was fired and the sound recorded by the microphone, combined with the distance between the laser transmitter and the ground. The results show that the speed of sound on Mars is about 240 meters per second. By comparison, the speed of sound on Earth is about 343 meters per second.
However, the researchers also found that the speed at which different sound frequencies travel on Mars is not small. Beyond 400 Hz, the speed of sound per second increases by about 10 meters. Therefore, the researchers believe that conversations on Mars will be very difficult. Different sounds will reach the listener at different speeds, and the conversation will sound chaotic.
The researchers said that this year they will continue to monitor and analyze the speed of sound on Mars to learn more about how different climatic conditions on Mars, such as winter and dust storms, affect the transmission of sound. ◇
Responsible editor: Ye Ziwei