[ This blog is dedicated to tracking my most recent publications. Subscribe to the feed to keep up with all the science stories I write! ]

How does sound travel on Mars?

The Curiosity rover is scraping a rock along in its wheels, but what would that actually sound like to our ears?

For Astronomy Magazine:

A few weeks ago, a large rock got caught in one of the wheels of the Mars Curiosity rover. It’s an occupational hazard: unlike a car on Earth, the rover’s aluminum wheels are open on the sides with large cleats. That design allows Curiosity to go over rough terrain, including jagged rocks that would destroy other kinds of wheels.

Looking at pictures of the rock inside the wheel, Mars spacecraft engineer Kristin Block of University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory idly asked: how loud would the rock sound? [Read the rest for the answer at Astronomy…]