Its caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere. Something we knew happened on Mars already.

My impression from all these articles is that their reporters know almost nothing about Mars and the research that is going on there, and were easily bamboozled by the press people at NASA and JPL to report this relatively minor story loudly. They no longer have anyone who covers science and space on a regular basis and thus understand the larger context, so therefore their coverage is often shaped entirely by the public relations departments at NASA.

The sad truth is that science reporting at mainstream major media has never batted at a high average. But so many of the dedicated science reporters who actually *were* worth half a darn were wiped out in the great newsroom cullings of the 2000’s and 2010’s. And the result has been a plummet from merely mediocre to downright embarrassing science coverage; and only rampant identitarian ideology allowing any vestige of Gell-Mann Amnesia to continue for their few remaining readers.

But I will note once again, since you mentioned the New York Times, that I think Kenneth Chang’s stuff is usually pretty decent. But he actually has a graduate degree in physics. (Maybe it is telling that Chang has not bothered with a story on the Martian auroras.)

I think the fact that Mars has auroras is noteworthy. I also think that NASA’s PR peeps are, as often happens, overselling it.

They no longer have anyone who covers REAL science and space.

This is not a correction of what you wrote, Mr Zimmerman. Just my comment on the situation. Thanks again for all you do!