NASA's Perseverance rover data reveals ultrafine Mars dust risks for astronauts
Analysis of dust on spacesuit material samples carried by the rover shows particles small enough to reach the lungs and bloodstream.
What to know
- Perseverance has carried spacesuit material swatches (Teflon, Vectran, basaltic glass) for 1,645 Martian days, using PIXL and SHERLOC instruments to measure accumulated dust.
- Newly detected particle categories go down to about 100 nanometers — roughly 700 times thinner than a human hair — small enough to penetrate lungs and enter the bloodstream.
- Martian dust differs from lunar dust: it is less abrasive due to wind rounding, but enriched in sulfur, chlorine, iron and silica, and can recirculate during dust storms.
- Findings, published in PNAS, are meant to guide spacesuit, habitat, dust-removal and crew-health design well before any crewed Mars mission.
“NASA has a long history of turning challenges into workable solutions and of finding creative ways to use the data that we have to answer questions beyond what it was originally collected for.”
Lindsay Hays, Acting director, Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters · NASA ↗ · Oct 25
Lindsay Hays Acting director, Planetary Science Division, NASA HeadquartersKatie Stack Morgan Perseverance project scientist, NASA JPL
How it unfolded 3 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlesposts
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NASA social account amplifies the dust-exposure findings
NASA's social media account promotes the study's relevance to preparing for future human missions to Mars, framing the dust measurements as a step toward crew protection.
“Over 1,645 Martian days, NASA's Perseverance rover measured fine and ultrafine Martian dust particles clinging to spacesuit material samples aboard the rover, helping prepare for future human missions! 🚀 #Mars #NASA #Perseverance…”
— @nasaupdates.bsky.social -
first by NASA breaking, 12d ago · also NASA
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Over 1,645 Martian days, NASA's Perseverance rover measured fine and ultrafine Martian dust particles clinging to spacesuit material samples aboard the rover, helping prepare for future human missions! 🚀 #Mars #NASA #Perseverance
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Study on Mars dust particle sizes published in PNAS
The peer-reviewed findings are formally published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, detailing two newly resolved categories of particles — fine particles under 2.5 micrometers and ultrafine particles around 100 nanometers — smaller than any previously measured on Mars.
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first by Phys.org, 12d ago
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NASA details Perseverance's dust measurements on spacesuit swatches
NASA announces that over 1,645 Martian days, Perseverance's PIXL and SHERLOC instruments measured fine and ultrafine dust clinging to onboard samples of spacesuit materials (Teflon, Vectran, basaltic glass), finding particles small enough to penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream. The findings were set for publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Oct. 27.
“Dust has been a surface-exploration challenge since the Apollo program. Perseverance is giving our engineers and flight surgeons measurements they can use to improve our existing designs well before the first American astronauts arrive on Mars.”
— Lindsay Hays, acting director, Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters -
first by Nature World News, 11d ago
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