Scientists studying Mars have discovered a surprising atmospheric phenomenon that was previously only known to exist around Earth.
The discovery could change how researchers understand the interaction between Mars and powerful solar storms.
The finding was made using data from NASA’s MAVEN mission and was published in the journal Nature Communications.
The phenomenon is known as the Zwan-Wolf effect. Scientists sometimes describe it using a simple image: charged particles being squeezed and pushed through magnetic structures like toothpaste coming out of a tube.
On Earth, this effect happens in the magnetosphere, the magnetic bubble that surrounds and protects our planet from harmful solar wind particles coming from the sun. Earth’s strong global magnetic field helps guide and deflect these particles.
Mars, however, is very different. Unlike Earth, Mars does not have a global magnetic field protecting the entire planet. Because of this, scientists did not expect to find the Zwan-Wolf effect deep inside the Martian atmosphere.
That is why the discovery came as such a surprise.
Lead researcher Christopher Fowler said he first noticed unusual “wiggles” in the spacecraft’s magnetic field data while examining measurements collected during a powerful solar storm in December 2023.
At first, the team did not know what caused the strange signals. Researchers carefully studied data from several MAVEN instruments, including measurements of charged particles in the Martian ionosphere, a layer of the atmosphere filled with electrically charged particles.
After eliminating other possible explanations, the scientists realized they were observing the Zwan-Wolf effect for the first time inside a planetary atmosphere.
The effect was detected below 200 kilometers above the Martian surface, much deeper in the atmosphere than expected.
Scientists believe the solar storm played a key role in revealing the phenomenon. Mars has a weaker “induced magnetosphere,” which forms when the solar wind interacts with the planet’s atmosphere. During strong solar storms, this magnetic environment can dramatically change shape and intensity.
The researchers suspect the Zwan-Wolf effect may actually occur constantly on Mars, but usually too weakly for MAVEN to detect. The extreme solar storm may have temporarily amplified the effect enough to make it visible in the spacecraft’s data.
The discovery is important because it reveals a new way that solar activity can influence the Martian atmosphere.
According to researchers, understanding this process could help scientists better predict how space weather affects Mars and other worlds without strong magnetic fields, including Venus and Titan.
It may also help future Mars missions prepare for dangerous solar storms that could affect spacecraft, communications, or astronauts.
The MAVEN spacecraft has been orbiting Mars since 2014, studying how the planet’s atmosphere interacts with the sun and how Mars gradually lost much of its atmosphere over billions of years.
Recently, however, the mission faced problems. NASA reported that MAVEN lost contact with Earth in December 2025. In early 2026, the agency launched a review to investigate the spacecraft’s condition and determine whether communication can be restored.
Despite the setback, MAVEN’s data continues to produce major discoveries about the Red Planet and its mysterious atmospheric behavior.
Source: NASA.
