Planetary Seismology

Extending Earth Monitoring to Mars

The same ambient noise interferometry powering 16,000+ Earth stations applied to NASA InSight's seismometer on Mars. Single-station autocorrelation reveals the Red Planet's subsurface velocity structure.

View Mars Demo
1,319
Marsquakes Detected
M5.0
Largest Event (S1222a)
4 Years
Continuous Data
24-72 km
Crustal Thickness

Capabilities

Single-Station Autocorrelation dv/v

Extract subsurface velocity changes from a single seismometer by autocorrelating ambient noise windows. Mars lacks ocean-generated microseisms, but wind-coupled pressure and thermal cracking provide continuous illumination.

Marsquake Catalog Integration

Cross-reference dv/v anomalies with 1,319 cataloged marsquakes, including the M5.0 S1222a event. Track velocity changes before and after seismic events to understand Mars's stress field.

Depth-Resolved Velocity Profiles

Multi-frequency analysis at 3 bands resolves Mars's layered structure: regolith (200-400 m/s), basaltic crust (4-6 km/s), and the crust-mantle boundary at 24-72 km depth.

Seasonal dv/v from Thermal Tides

Mars's extreme diurnal temperature swings (80-100C) create measurable velocity changes in the shallow subsurface. Track seasonal patterns across the 687-day Martian year.

Dust Storm Impact Detection

Global dust storms change Mars's atmospheric coupling to the surface. Detect the seismic signature of dust storms through changes in autocorrelation stability and noise spectra.

Artemis Moon Preparation

Algorithms developed for InSight's single-station analysis apply directly to future lunar seismometers planned for NASA's Artemis program (2027-2028). Build the processing pipeline now.

From 16,000 Earth Stations to 1 Mars Station

DeepMap AI monitors Earth with 16,035 seismic stations across 50+ networks, processing 30,000 station pairs daily. We apply the same physics -- ambient noise cross-correlation, rolling reference stacks, stretching-method dv/v -- to a single station on another planet.

If we can detect underground caves, track aquifers, and predict earthquakes on Earth with ambient noise, we can map Mars's subsurface with InSight's SEIS data.

View Earth Observatory

The Physics

Ambient Noise on Mars

No oceans means no microseisms. Instead, Mars's thin atmosphere (0.6% of Earth's) couples pressure fluctuations to the surface at 0.1-1 Hz. Thermal cracking from day/night temperature extremes provides higher-frequency excitation.

Autocorrelation Technique

With only one station, we autocorrelate: compute the Green's function of the subsurface by correlating the signal with itself across time windows. Reflections from layer boundaries appear as coherent arrivals.

InSight SEIS VBB

The Very Broadband seismometer covers 0.01-50 Hz with 10^-9 m/s sensitivity. Located in Elysium Planitia (4.5N, 135.6E), a relatively flat region ideal for horizontal-layer analysis.

Mars vs Earth Comparison

Mars has no plate tectonics, no active magnetic field, and a cold lithosphere. Yet it has seismicity -- from cooling/contraction and possibly deep mantle plume activity under Tharsis.

Ready for the Next Frontier?

Whether you're a planetary scientist, space agency, or private space company -- DeepMap AI's subsurface intelligence extends beyond Earth.

Contact Us

API access available at /api/v1/cross-physics/mars-insight/demo