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Evaluating the Wind-Induced Mechanical Noise on the InSight Seismometers

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Abstract

The SEIS (Seismic Experiment for Interior Structures) instrument onboard the InSight mission to Mars is the critical instrument for determining the interior structure of Mars, the current level of tectonic activity and the meteorite flux. Meeting the performance requirements of the SEIS instrument is vital to successfully achieve these mission objectives. Here we analyse in-situ wind measurements from previous Mars space missions to understand the wind environment that we are likely to encounter on Mars, and then we use an elastic ground deformation model to evaluate the mechanical noise contributions on the SEIS instrument due to the interaction between the Martian winds and the InSight lander. Lander mechanical noise maps that will be used to select the best deployment site for SEIS once the InSight lander arrives on Mars are also presented. We find the lander mechanical noise may be a detectable signal on the InSight seismometers. However, for the baseline SEIS deployment position, the noise is expected to be below the total noise requirement \(>97~\%\) of the time and is, therefore, not expected to endanger the InSight mission objectives.

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Notes

  1. These data were provided by J. Murphy and J. Tillman, via D. Banfield.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge many stimulating discussions related to this subject with members of the SEIS and InSight teams. The Phoenix Telltale experiment data were obtained from the Planetary Data System. We are grateful to J. Murphy and J. Tillman for providing the Viking Lander wind data and we thank C. Wilson and A. Spiga for their very useful insights related to the wind properties on Mars and the interpretation of previous in-situ Martian data. We would also like to thank N. Teanby for his helpful comments on the manuscript. This work has been supported by CNES, including post-doctoral support provided to N. Murdoch. This paper is InSight Contribution Number 19.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut Supérieur de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace (ISAE-SUPAERO), Université de Toulouse, 31055, Toulouse Cedex 4, France

    Naomi Murdoch, David Mimoun & Raphael F. Garcia

  2. Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planetologie (IRAP), Université de Toulouse III Paul Sabatier, 31400, Toulouse, France

    William Rapin

  3. Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Paris, France

    Taichi Kawamura & Philippe Lognonné

  4. Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA

    Don Banfield

  5. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91109, USA

    W. Bruce Banerdt

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  1. Naomi Murdoch
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  2. David Mimoun
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  3. Raphael F. Garcia
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Correspondence to Naomi Murdoch.

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Murdoch, N., Mimoun, D., Garcia, R.F. et al. Evaluating the Wind-Induced Mechanical Noise on the InSight Seismometers. Space Sci Rev 211, 429–455 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11214-016-0311-y

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