SpaceNASAs Perseverance rover recorded unusual sounds as a Martian dust devil passed directly over the robotic vehicle in 2021, and we now know they came from electrical activity in the storm 18 March 2025 Dust storms on Mars are electricMARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/AlamyElectrified whirlwinds on Mars can produce lightning-like discharges, which could pose a threat to the rovers trundling around on the Red Planets surface.Severe weather on Mars can sometimes create dust devils, whirlwinds of Martian soil that spin for a few minutes before vanishing. Dust devils form on Earth too, and they can become electrified when the larger dust particles they carry which tend to be positively charged fall to the ground, while smaller and negatively charged particles are lofted upwards. If this electric field becomes large