Dust Storm Over Northern Mars

Explanation: Almost on cue , as Mars nears its closest approach to planet Earth in recorded history, ominous seasonal dust storms are beginning to kick up. Observers worry that the activity may presage the development of a planet wide dust storm , frustrating attempts to view Mars in the coming months, a situation similar to the Red Planet's uncooperative behavior in 2001. In this example , recorded in mid-May by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft camera, a dust storm the size of a continent sweeps north and east (toward the upper right) across Mars' northern Acidalia Planitia. Meanwhile , interplanetary robotic explorers Mars Express / Beagle 2 , Nozomi , and the twin Mars Exploration Rovers Opportunity and Spirit, are all bound for Mars and should arrive by early January 2004.