See Stunning Footage Of A Solar Eclipse On Mars

Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos. Studying them via solar eclipse can reveal surprising information about the planet which they orbit. Even though Phobos is only 17 miles across, it does orbit close to the planet’s surface (via NASA). There are two-way effects caused by this: Phobos exerts a pull on Mars’s interior, and Mars is slowly pulling Phobos closer over time. By looking at this relationship, researchers can understand more about the interior of Mars (via JPL). Eventually, Phobos will come too close to the surface of Mars and be destroyed. But there is a theory that this may not be the end of the story, as the moon could be pulled apart into small chunks and form rings around the planet in around 70 million years’ time. There may even be a cycle with Mars switching between moons and rings over huge timescales (via NASA).

For now, researchers will admire the footage of Phobos passing in front of the sun and use it to gather as much data as they can about this moon. “You can see details in the shape of Phobos’ shadow, like ridges and bumps on the moon’s landscape,” said Mark Lemmon, a longtime Phobos researcher (via JPL). “You can also see sunspots. And it’s cool that you can see this eclipse exactly as the rover saw it from Mars.”