Researchers from the University of Bern in Switzerland and Imperial College London confirmed that seismic waves generated by a meteoroid impact in Cerberus Fossae traveled through the Martian mantle rather than along the crust, contradicting earlier theories. The impact was recorded as seismic event S0794a and provided the first direct evidence of a marsquake originating from an impact crater at an intermediate distance. <\/p>\n
The impact left a 21.5 m (70.5 feet) crater, located 1 640 km (1 019 miles) from NASA\u2019s InSight lander. The research team identified the impact site using high-resolution orbital imaging, confirming that the crater formed between July 3, 2019, and November 2, 2021.<\/p>\n
The event suggests that many previously identified marsquakes may have originated much farther away than initially estimated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe used to think the energy detected from the vast majority of seismic events was stuck traveling within the Martian crust,\u201d InSight team member Constantinos Charalambous of Imperial College London said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis finding shows a deeper, faster path \u2014 call it a seismic highway \u2014 through the mantle, allowing quakes to reach more distant regions of the planet.\u201d<\/p>\n
The discovery challenges earlier models that suggested high-frequency marsquakes travel only through the planet\u2019s crust. The data indicates that seismic waves propagate through the mantle at higher speeds than previously calculated, leading to revised interpretations of seismic events across Mars.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thought Cerberus Fossae produced lots of high-frequency seismic signals associated with internally generated quakes, but this suggests some of the activity does not originate there and could actually be from impacts instead,\u201d Charalambous said.<\/p>\n
Seismic propagation through the Martian mantle<\/h3>\n
Seismic waves on Mars were long assumed to propagate through the crust, moving at slower velocities because of the low-density material. Data from event S0794a indicate that the seismic energy traveled through the denser mantle at a higher velocity than previously estimated. The discovery challenges existing models and suggests that many past marsquake epicenters may be located much farther from the InSight lander than initially thought.<\/p>\n
Understanding this unexpected seismic behavior requires reevaluating Mars\u2019 internal structure. The mantle\u2019s denser composition allows seismic waves to travel faster, refuting earlier assumptions that high-frequency marsquakes were restricted to the crust. Future studies will need to revise velocity models and reassess seismic event distributions to improve accuracy in determining planetary activity.<\/p>\n![\"YouTube](\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/SA90WKuukmM\/hqdefault.jpg\"\/)
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