Mars

Extracted Attributes

• Name

  Mars

• Size

  Second-smallest planet in Solar System

• Type

  Terrestrial planet

• Moons

  Phobos, Deimos (two small, irregularly shaped)

• Radius

  3,400 kilometers

• Diameter

  6,780 kilometers (4,212 miles)

• Nickname

  The Red Planet

• Appearance

  Reddish, caused by iron oxide

• Past State

  Likely wetter and warmer, with a thicker atmosphere, billions of years ago

• Core Radius

  1,500 to 2,100 kilometers (930 to 1,300 miles)

• Crust Depth

  10 to 50 kilometers (6 to 30 miles)

• Named After

  Roman god of war

• Habitability

  Potentially habitable in the past; unknown if life ever existed

• Orbital Speed

  Around 24 kilometers per second

• Formation Date

  -4540000000-01-01

• Water Presence

  Polar ice caps largely composed of water; retains some water in the ground and atmosphere

• Surface Gravity

  3.73 m/s², or 38% that of Earth's

• Core Composition

  Iron, nickel, and sulfur

• Solar Day Length

  25 Earth hours

• Crust Composition

  Primarily tholeiitic basalt, similar to Earth's crust (iron, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, potassium)

• Position from Sun

  Fourth

• Solar Year Length

  687 Earth days

• Apparent Magnitude

  Reaches -2.94

• Atmospheric Pressure

  Less than 1% of Earth's

• Ancient Egyptian Name

  Her Desher (meaning 'the red one')

• Visibility from Earth

  Visible with the naked eye, among the brightest objects in Earth's sky

• Atmosphere Composition

  Thin, primarily carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon gases

• Mass relative to Earth

  11% of Earth's mass

• Equatorial Circumference

  21,000 kilometers

• Volume relative to Earth

  15% of Earth's volume

• Average Distance from Sun

  228 million kilometers (142 million miles)

• Surface Temperature Range

  -153°C (-243°F) to 20°C (68-70°F)

• Surface Area relative to Earth

  Slightly less than the total area of Earth's dry land

Timeline

• Formation of Mars. (Source: Wikidata)

  -4540000000-01-01

• Mars is observed by ancient astronomers, including those in Ancient Egypt. (Source: Summary, DBPedia, Web Search Results)

  Ancient times

• First uncrewed spacecraft, Mariner 4, explores Mars. (Source: Summary, DBPedia)

  1965

• NASA's Viking 1 lander transmits the first images from the Martian surface. (Source: DBPedia)

  1976

• The United States successfully deploys its first rover, Sojourner, on Mars. (Source: DBPedia)

  1997

• China successfully deploys its Zhurong rover on Mars. (Source: DBPedia)

  2021

• A Mars sample-return mission is planned. (Source: Summary, DBPedia)

  2026

• The Rosalind Franklin rover mission is planned for launch (earliest, originally 2018, delayed to 2024). (Source: DBPedia)

  2028

• Elon Musk envisions establishing a self-sustaining city on Mars as part of making humanity a multi-planetary species. (Source: Summary, Related Documents)

  Future

Web Search Results

• Mars

  Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide (CO2) atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmospheric pressure is a few thousandths of Earth's, atmospheric temperature ranges from −153 to 20 °C (−243 to 68 °F) and cosmic radiation is high. Mars retains some water, in the ground as well as thinly in the atmosphere, forming cirrus clouds, frost, larger [...] Mars is a terrestrial planet with a surface that consists of minerals containing silicon and oxygen, metals, and other elements that typically make up rock "Rock (geology)"). The Martian surface is primarily composed of tholeiitic basalt, although parts are more silica-rich than typical basalt and may be similar to andesitic rocks on Earth, or silica glass. Regions of low albedo suggest concentrations of plagioclase feldspar, with northern low albedo regions displaying higher than normal [...] Mars is approximately half the diameter of Earth or twice that of the Moon, with a surface area only slightly less than the total area of Earth's dry land. Mars is less dense than Earth, having about 15% of Earth's volume and 11% of Earth's mass, resulting in about 38% of Earth's surface gravity. Mars is the only presently known example of a desert planet, a rocky planet with a surface akin to that of Earth's deserts. The red-orange appearance of the Martian surface is caused by iron(III)

• Mars, the red planet

  Mars can be seen from Earth with the naked eye. As the fourth planet from the Sun, it is one of the closest worlds to Earth and one of the brightest planets in the Solar System. Venus and Jupiter are typically the only planets brighter than Mars in the night sky. [...] > ## Mars facts > > Surface temperature: -153°C (-243°F) to 20°C (70°F) > Average distance from Sun: 228 million kilometers (142 million miles), or 1.5 times farther from the Sun than Earth > Diameter: 6,780 kilometers (4,212 miles), Earth is 1.9 times larger > Volume: 163 billion km³ (39 billion mi³), Mars could fit inside Earth a little over 6 times > Gravity: 3.73 m/s², or 38% that of Earth’s > Solar day: 25 Earth hours > Solar year: 687 Earth days [...] We now know that Mars is very cold and dry, with no breathable atmosphere and no global magnetic field to protect it from the Sun's radiation. But Mars wasn't always that way. Space missions have shown us that the planet once had liquid water on its surface and could have been hospitable to life as we know it. Today, there may still be life beneath the Martian surface, with access to water and protection from radiation and extreme temperatures.

• Mars - NASA Science

  Mars is one of the most explored bodies in our solar system, and it's the only planet where we've sent rovers to explore the alien landscape. NASA missions have found lots of evidence that Mars was much wetter and warmer, with a thicker atmosphere, billions of years ago. Explore Mars with Us about Why Do We Go? Image 62: A composite image of Earth and Mars was created to allow viewers to gain a better understanding of the relative sizes of the two planets. [...] ### Curiosity at 13 On Aug. 5 PDT (Aug. 6 EDT), the rover marks 13 years on the Red Planet. Mars Overview Mars is no place for the faint-hearted. It’s dry, rocky, and bitter cold. The fourth planet from the Sun, Mars, is one of Earth's two closest planetary neighbors (Venus is the other). Mars is one of the easiest planets to spot in the night sky — it looks like a bright red point of light. [...] Mars remains our horizon goal for human exploration because it is one of the only other places we know in the solar system where life may have existed. What we learn about the Red Planet will tell us more about our Earth’s past and future, and may help answer whether life exists beyond our home planet. Learn More About Humans to Mars about Humans to Mars Image 68: Illustration of an astronaut on Mars, using a remote control drone to inspect a nearby cliff.

• Planet Mars

  Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun, orbiting at an average of 228 million kilometres away from the star. The planet moves at a speed of around 24 kilometres per second, making it slightly slower than Earth. It has an elliptical orbit, meaning it is egg- or oval-shaped. This means that throughout its year, Mars's distance from the Sun ranges between around 206 million and 249 million kilometres. ### How long is a day on Mars? [...] ### How big is Mars? Mars is around two times smaller than Earth. It has an equatorial circumference of about 21,000 kilometres, and a radius (the distance from the middle of its core to the surface) of around 3,400 kilometres. It's thought that Mars's core is predominantly made up of iron, but also nickel and sulphur. The core is about half the size of the planet and may be entirely liquid, or have a solid iron centre and a liquid exterior. [...] Mars has a large, dark patch on its surface, known as the Syrtis Major Planum. It reaches around 1,500 kilometres north from the equator and is around 1,000 kilometres in width. The dark colour is due to its primarily basalt rock composition. ### Who discovered Mars? Mars is one of the five classical planets visible to the naked eye. It was known at least 4,000 years ago - its course was charted by astronomers in Ancient Egypt. We don't know who first discovered the planet, however.

• Mars: Facts

  Unable to render the provided source Introduction Mars is one of the most explored bodies in our solar system, and it's the only planet where we've sent rovers to roam the alien landscape. NASA missions have found lots of evidence that Mars was much wetter and warmer, with a thicker atmosphere, billions of years ago. Mars was named by the Romans for their god of war because its reddish color was reminiscent of blood. The Egyptians called it "Her Desher," meaning "the red one." [...] Mars has a dense core at its center between 930 and 1,300 miles (1,500 to 2,100 kilometers) in radius. It's made of iron, nickel, and sulfur. Surrounding the core is a rocky mantle between 770 and 1,170 miles (1,240 to 1,880 kilometers) thick, and above that, a crust made of iron, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, and potassium. This crust is between 6 and 30 miles (10 to 50 kilometers) deep. Surface [...] Mars has a thin atmosphere made up mostly of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon gases. To our eyes, the sky would be hazy and red because of suspended dust instead of the familiar blue tint we see on Earth. Mars' sparse atmosphere doesn't offer much protection from impacts by such objects as meteorites, asteroids, and comets.

• Image

  

• Instance Of

  Q844911

• Inception Date

  Invalid Date

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, being larger than only Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere (less than 1% that of Earth's), and has a crust primarily composed of elements similar to Earth's crust, as well as a core made of iron and nickel. Mars has surface features such as impact craters, valleys, dunes, and polar ice caps. It has two small and irregularly shaped moons: Phobos and Deimos. Some of the most notable surface features on Mars include Olympus Mons, the largest volcano and highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System, and Valles Marineris, one of the largest canyons in the Solar System. The Borealis basin in the Northern Hemisphere covers approximately 40% of the planet and may be a large impact feature. Days and seasons on Mars are comparable to those of Earth, as the planets have a similar rotation period and tilt of the rotational axis relative to the ecliptic plane. Liquid water on the surface of Mars cannot exist due to low atmospheric pressure, which is less than 1% of the atmospheric pressure on Earth. Both of Mars's polar ice caps appear to be made largely of water. In the distant past, Mars was likely wetter, and thus possibly more suited for life. However, it is unknown whether life has ever existed on Mars. Mars has been explored by several uncrewed spacecraft, beginning with Mariner 4 in 1965. NASA's Viking 1 lander transmitted in 1976 the first images from the Martian surface. Two countries have successfully deployed rovers on Mars, the United States first doing so with Sojourner in 1997 and China with Zhurong in 2021. There are also planned future missions to Mars, such as a Mars sample-return mission set to happen in 2026, and the Rosalind Franklin rover mission, which was intended to launch in 2018 but was delayed to 2024 at the earliest, with a more likely launch date at 2028. Mars can be viewed from Earth with the naked eye, as can its reddish coloring. This appearance, due to the iron oxide prevalent on its surface, has led to Mars often being called the Red Planet. It is among the brightest objects in Earth's sky, with an apparent magnitude that reaches −2.94, comparable to that of Jupiter and surpassed only by Venus, the Moon and the Sun. Historically, Mars has been observed since ancient times, and over the millennia has been featured in culture and the arts in ways that have reflected humanity's growing knowledge of it.