Mars is the fourth-closest planet from the Sun and is the most explored planet beyond Earth. It’s famous for its red hue, but that’s not all. What are the features of the red planet? Let’s find out.
Basic Features
Firstly, you need to know that Mars is the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, with a diameter of 6,779 kilometers. Secondly, it’s approximately 10.7% of Earth’s mass. Thirdly, it has about 38% of Earth’s surface gravity, making its gravitational acceleration 3.71 m/s2.
The red planet is 1.5 astronomical units from the Sun. Therefore, it takes 687 (Earth) days to orbit our star. Furthermore, it has a rotation period of 24 hours and 36 minutes, slightly slower than Earth’s. Its axial tilt is about 25 degrees, making seasons on Mars like the ones on Earth. The planet has an elliptical orbit, so the seasons are not evenly spaced.
Image Credit: Canva, NASA’s Eyes
The Martian Atmosphere
Mars’s atmosphere is very thin because it only has 1% of Earth’s atmospheric pressure. But, it produces enough friction for the approaching space probes to glow due to heat.
Image Credit: Canva, NASA’s Eyes
Also, the Martian atmosphere is as inhospitable as it sounds. It contains 95% carbon dioxide, although the molecules don’t produce enough greenhouse effect to heat up the planet. Additionally, it contains some other trace elements such as nitrogen, argon, and oxygen.
Why is Mars Red?
When you see a picture of Mars, you’ll probably see some red tint. That’s why it’s called “The Red Planet” for a long time. Also, Mars is named after the Roman God of War, which is apparently because of its bloody tint, which isn’t the case at all.
Mars, like other terrestrial planets, has plenty of iron on its crust. Subsequently, the materials that made it up to the surface has gotten oxidized. What does rust (oxidized iron) look like? It’s reddish-brown!
Image Credit: Canva, NASA’s Eyes
But, the planet comes in many colors. Different minerals have different colors, as you’ve learned in a science class. Thus, brown, gold, and tan (colors) are present on the surface, too!
Mars’s Structure
The Martian interior isn’t that fascinating as it has no tectonic activity. So, let’s talk about its mantle first.
Mars’s mantle is made of metals like magnesium, iron, silicon, etc., and contains oxygen and other elements.
What about its core? The core is primarily made of iron, nickel, and sulfur, much like our planet’s. But, the mantle and core are static, so they do not create a global magnetic field. Therefore, Mars is bombarded by radiation particles and solar wind, further making it inhabitable.
Mars’s Landscapes
Like Earth, the red planet has craters, canyons, and volcanoes. In fact, a Martian volcano — Olympus Mons, is the largest volcano in the Solar System! Moreover, the largest canyon on the red planet — Valles Marineris, is about 9 times longer, 7 times wider, and 6 times deeper than Earth’s Grand Canyon.
Mars’s Moons
Mars has two tiny moons — Phobos and Deimos. Their compositions and locations show that they’re captured asteroids, not forming with the planet. Also, it’s worth mentioning that Phobos is too close to the red planet — it will be destroyed in about 50 million years, creating a spectacular ring like Saturn’s.
Let’s mention their dimensions. Phobos is about 22.4 kilometers wide, while Deimos is about 13 kilometers. They’re pretty insignificant compared to other planets’ largest moons, which are thousands of kilometers wide.
Life on Mars?
Although many people mention Mars has aliens in the past, Martian orbiters and explorers rejected this idea. But, as more and more pieces of evidence are found, including dried lake beds, there are some probabilities of life on the red planet in history.
As a result, NASA launched the Perseverance rover and set finding signs of past microbial life as one of the primary mission goals. That includes searching for suitable environments, inspecting biosignatures, and collecting samples for a future mission.
The Exploration of Mars
Mars is famous for being the most explored planet outside Earth because many orbiters, landers, and rovers have visited the planet. This list includes:
- Perseverance (en route)
- Curiosity
- Insight
- Spirit and Opportunity
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
- Mars Odyssey
- MAVEN
Etc.
Each spacecraft has its unique findings, providing us with a lot of knowledge about the red planet and resolved many disputations.
Conclusion
Here are the things you need to learn about Mars, and you still have to learn more because we’ve only scratched the surface. If you don’t know how to start, just check out the references and follow their links.
References and Credits
- (n.d.). By the Numbers | Mars – NASA Solar System Exploration. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/mars/by-the-numbers/
- (2019, December 19). In Depth | Mars – NASA Solar System Exploration. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/mars/in-depth/
- Tim Sharp. (2017, September 12). Mars’ Atmosphere: Composition, Climate & Weather | Space. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://www.space.com/16903-mars-atmosphere-climate-weather.html
- Sandra May. (2020, December 4). What Is Mars? | NASA. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/nasa-knows/what-is-mars-58.html
- Tim Sharp. (2017, December 12). What is Mars Made Of? | Composition of Planet Mars | Space. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://www.space.com/16895-what-is-mars-made-of.html
- Nola Taylor Redd. (2017, December 9). Valles Marineris: Facts About the Grand Canyon of Mars | Space. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://www.space.com/20446-valles-marineris.html
- (2019, December 19). In Depth | Mars Moons – NASA Solar System Exploration. Retrieved December 29, 2020, from https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/moons/mars-moons/in-depth/
Image Credits: NASA’s Eyes, Canva