Temperature and Winds for InSight (TWINS) is a

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...

meteorological suite of instruments on board the ''

InSight Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings: *a piece of information *the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of seeing intui ...

'' lander that landed on

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

on 26 November 2018. TWINS provides continuous wind and air temperature measurements to help understand the seismic data from the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS) instrument. The instruments were developed by the

Spanish Astrobiology Center Spanish Astrobiology Center ( es, Centro de Astrobiología, links=no (CAB)) is a state-run institute in Spain dedicated to astrobiology research, and it is part of the National Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA) as well as the Spanish Nation ...

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

Overview

TWINS is based on the heritage from REMS (

Rover Environmental Monitoring Station Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) is a weather station on Mars for Curiosity rover contributed by Spain and Finland. REMS measures humidity, pressure, temperature, wind speeds, and ultraviolet radiation on Mars. This Spanish project ...

) on board the ''Curiosity'' rover, with enhanced performances in terms of dynamic range and resolution.The TWINS Instrument On Board Mars Insight Mission
Velasco, Tirso, and Rodríguez-Manfredi, Jose A., EGU General Assembly 2015, held 12–17 April 2015 in Vienna, Austria. id.2571. April 2015 TWINS provides continuous wind and air temperature measurements to help understand the seismic data from the SEIS instrument. While probing the internal structure of Mars is the primary scientific goal of the ''InSight'' mission, atmospheric science remains a key science objective.Atmospheric Science with InSight
Spiga, A., Banfield, D., Teanby, N.A. et al., ''Space Science Reviews'' 2 October 2018 214:109 ''InSight'' will provide a continuous and higher-frequency record of pressure, air temperature and winds at the surface of Mars than previous ''in situ'' missions. The sensors include thermometers, and an

anemometer In meteorology, an anemometer () is a device that measures wind speed and direction. It is a common instrument used in weather stations. The earliest known description of an anemometer was by Italian architect and author Leon Battista Alberti ...

to measure wind speed and direction twice per second. Additional sensors are the InSight FluxGate (IFG)

magnetometer A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment. Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location. A compass is one such device, ...

provided by

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the Californ ...

(UCLA) to measure the direction and magnitude of magnetic fields such as those caused by the Martian ionosphere; and a highly sensitive pressure sensor (

barometer A barometer is a scientific instrument that is used to measure air pressure in a certain environment. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather. Many measurements of air pressure are used within surface weather analysis ...

) from

Jet Propulsion Laboratory The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a Federally funded research and development centers, federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, La Cañada Flintridge, California ...

(JPL). Wind, temperature, pressure and magnetometer data is used to understand the local wind behavior at the landing site to help understand and interpret SEIS data. At the same time, the lander uses its cameras to document

cirrus cloud Cirrus ( cloud classification symbol: Ci) is a genus of high cloud made of ice crystals. Cirrus clouds typically appear delicate and wispy with white strands. Cirrus are usually formed when warm, dry air rises, causing water vapor deposition on ...

s that develop high above Elysium Planitia, any instances of fog that appear along the ground, as well as

dust devil A dust devil is a strong, well-formed, and relatively short-lived whirlwind. Its size ranges from small (half a metre wide and a few metres tall) to large (more than 10 m wide and more than 1 km tall). The primary vertical motion is ...

s.NASA InSight to give us our best look yet at Mars weather
''The Weather Network'' 22 November 2018 With this data, scientists are able to gain even greater insights into Mars' weather and climate, supplementing what was collected by previous missions, and what is currently being gathered by the ''Curiosity'' rover about 600 km to the south.

Auxiliary Payload Sensor Suite (APSS)

TWINS on InSight is part of what is called the Auxiliary Payload Sensor Suite, forming a "weather station" which components include:Operations of the SEIS Seismometer Onboard the 2016 Mars InSIght Mission
Charles Yana, Aurélie Moussi, Agnès Jullien1. SpaceOps Conferences 16–20 May 2016, Daejeon, Korea Copyright by CNES. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc., with permission * TWINS: Temperature and wind sensor developed by the Spanish Astrobiology Center (CAB), Madrid, Spain * IFG: InSight FluxGate magnetometer, developed by the

University of California at Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

(UCLA) ay USA * PS:

Pressure sensor A pressure sensor is a device for pressure measurement of gases or liquids. Pressure is an expression of the force required to stop a fluid from expanding, and is usually stated in terms of force per unit area. A pressure sensor usually ...

developed by the TAVIS company at USA * PAE: Electronics controlling the TWINS, PS and IFG sensors developed by JPL

References

{{Insight InSight Climate of Mars Spacecraft instruments INTA spacecraft instruments

Overview

Auxiliary Payload Sensor Suite (APSS)

See also

References