Chapter 2 of 5

An ear on the ground

Wind vibrations, careful deployment and the first likely marsquake

Told in InSight’s imagined voice · the events are real · source

NASA's InSight lander placed its seismometer onto Mars on Dec.
InSightAt first, my listening instrument felt the wind shaking my wings.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
01On December 1, 2018, SEIS was still on my deck. It recorded solar-panel vibrations while a pressure sensor measured changes in the air. Those measurements became the first released sounds of Martian wind.
My arm had to put that delicate ear on the ground.
02On December 19, my grapple gently placed SEIS in front of me. Its five mechanical fingers grasped a handle; engineers tested the deployment commands on Earth before sending them.
NASA's InSight lander deployed its Wind and Thermal Shield on Feb.
InSightTo notice a tiny signal, we had to understand the noise.
NASA/JPL-Caltech
03A domed shield protected SEIS from wind and temperature changes. Scientists still compared the ground-motion records with weather and spacecraft activity; not every wiggle was a quake.
Then came a small trembling from inside the planet.
04On April 6, 2019, the team recorded its first likely marsquake. Scientists studied how seismic waves moved through Mars to investigate layers they could not see from the surface.

The big idea

A seismometer measures motion, not feelings. Careful placement and noise checks turn a faint signal into evidence.

Think about it

Why might a wind gust look important on a seismometer?

Fact file

SEIS deployment
19 December 2018
Placed on the ground in front of the lander; NASA reports 1.636 meters away, without the draft’s invented map pins.
Source ↗
First likely marsquake
6 April 2019 / Sol 128
Preserves the source’s word ‘likely’. This is an observation date, not the release date of the audio visualization.
Source ↗

In this chapter: SEIS seismometer, five-finger grapple, tether, wind and thermal shield, and air-pressure sensor

Sources: Main record · NASA InSight Lander ‘Hears’ Martian Winds · InSight’s Sol 128 Seismic Event · PIA23176 · InSight Spacecraft · NASA Science

Machine illustration: AI-made. Photos: NASA Image and Video Library, credited on each picture.

Chapter 2 of 5

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