Marsquakes happen when rock fractures in the Martian crust under heat and stress, and when meteoroids strike the surface. Unlike Earth, Mars has no Earth-like system of moving tectonic plates, so plate motion is not the familiar driver of its quakes. InSight measurements also show that seismic waves on Mars can travel in ways that are partly Earth-like and partly Moon-like.
What causes marsquakes?
Marsquakes have more than one source. NASA describes many as fractures or faults forming in the crust under heat and stress. Mars lacks Earth-like moving tectonic plates, but that does not prevent its rocks from breaking or producing seismic waves. NASA summarizes the distinction in its InSight study of the Martian core.
Fractures inside the crust
As heat and stress act on Martian rock, fractures can form and release energy as seismic waves. These events arise from internal geological processes, not from the collision or sliding of Earth-style moving plates. NASA’s Mars in a Minute explainer introduces the difference between quakes on the two planets.
Meteoroid impacts
A meteoroid striking Mars also sends seismic waves through the planet. In one notable case, NASA connected an InSight magnitude 4 event to one of the largest meteoroid impacts observed on Mars. The attribution relied on matching the seismic record with orbital imagery of a fresh crater; it was not simply assumed to be an internally generated quake. See NASA’s account of InSight’s impact-generated marsquakes.
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The available NASA accounts establish both crustal fractures and impacts as sources, but do not give a reliable percentage breakdown for all observed events.
How marsquakes differ from earthquakes
| Comparison | Marsquakes | Earthquakes |
|---|---|---|
| Geological setting | Mars has no Earth-like moving tectonic plates. Crustal fractures can still form under heat and stress. | Many familiar earthquakes are associated with faults and moving tectonic plates. |
| Other established source | Meteoroid impacts generate seismic signals as well as internal fractures. | The NASA sources cited here do not provide a full account of terrestrial earthquake causes. |
| Wave behavior | InSight recorded more than one type of signal: some waves were described as more Earth-like, others as more Moon-like. | NASA’s comparison describes earthquake waves as traveling more directly than the scattered waves associated with Moonquakes. |
| What instruments detect | InSight’s SEIS instrument measured ground motion, but wind vibration could obscure some events. | The sources cited here do not support a like-for-like comparison of detection rates or typical magnitudes. |
NASA’s comparison places Mars between the more direct wave travel associated with Earthquakes and the more scattered pattern associated with Moonquakes. In a report on two sizable marsquakes, NASA described the mission’s records as showing both more Earth-like and more Moon-like signals. This refers to how the waves behave, not to Mars having Earth’s plate-tectonic system.
How scientists detect and interpret marsquakes
NASA’s InSight lander carried the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS), which measured ground motion. As seismic waves pass through different materials, their signals provide clues to the structure of Mars’s crust, mantle, and core. NASA explains this method in How InSight Studies Mars’ Inner Layers and describes the mission’s scientific aims on its InSight Science page.
Detection is not a simple count of every event that occurred. Wind could vibrate the lander and obscure some signals even when SEIS was shielded. For impact events, combining seismic readings with orbital observations—such as images of new craters—helps scientists identify the source.
What the evidence does—and does not—show
InSight’s observations establish that Mars experiences seismic events from internal fractures and meteoroid impacts, and that its seismic waves can travel in different ways. The sources cited here do not establish a general Mars-versus-Earth comparison of quake frequency or typical magnitude. A meaningful quantitative comparison would require comparable datasets and detection conditions for both planets.
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