The Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) attached on the Perseverance rover has sent the first weather report. The skycam has sent images and meteorological data to NASA’s system.
MEDA weighs around 5.5 kg and has many sensors to capture information on dust levels and various atmospheric conditions like wind, humidity, pressure, ground temperature, air temperature and radiations from space and sun. MEDA goes to sleep at regular intervals and wakes automatically. Even at the time of sleep, it captures and records the environmental changes.
The first weather report came from the Jezero Crater on Mars. The temperature was just below -20°C initially which later dropped to -25.6°C in just 30 minutes. The atmosphere near the Jezero was very clear according to the data collected by the dust sensor. The pressure was 718 pascals on Mars.
The scientists hopes that MEDA could provide more information on dust cycles, temperature cycles, heat fixtures and on how the dust particles interact with light and so on. The engineers from NASA now has the luxury to get information on atmospheric data from the Perseverance rover, Curiosity and Insight lander. All these can provide them with more deeper and exact data.
Source: https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8909/nasas-first-weather-report-from-jezero-crater-on-mars/