Unlike tornadoes, dust devils usually form on a clear day, when the sun warms the ground and the air just above it. As heated air near the surface rises quickly through a small pocket of cooler air above it, the air may begin to rotate, resulting in such sandy swirls. Earth's atmosphere is 100 times as dense as that of Mars, so these may indeed be mighty tempests by the standards of the Red Planet.
Scene of Mysterious Martian 'Dust Devils' Captured by NASA
10:22 GMT 03.03.2017 (Updated: 19:29 GMT 19.10.2022)
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NASA has published a 360-degree panoramic video from footage taken from the Curiosity rover showing several eerie whirlwinds of Martian dust near Gale crater.
