Mars

MARS

General Information

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and is the second smallest planet in the solar system. Named after the Roman god of war, Mars is also often described as the “Red Planet” due to its reddish appearance. Mars is a Terrestial Planet with a thin atmosphere composed primarily of carbon dioxide.

Fun facts

• Mars is the second smallest planet in the solar system after Mercury. With a diameter (distance through the middle) of 6,791 kilometres, it’s roughly half the size of Earth.
• It can get pretty cold on Mars –– much colder than our own planet, since it’s further away from the Sun. At the equator, temperatures can reach 20°C, but at its poles they can plummet to as low as -140°C.
• Mars is home to the highest mountain in our solar system –– a volcano called Olympus Mons. Standing a whopping 24 kilometres high, it’s about three times the height of Mount Everest!
• You could jump around three times higher on Mars than you can on Earth. This is because the planet’s gravity – the force that keeps us on the ground – is much weaker.
• Mars has two moons! One is called Phobos and the other Deimos.
• A day on Mars is 24 hours and 37 minutes –– only a little bit longer than a day on our own planet. A year on Mars, however, is almost twice as long, lasting 687 Earth days! This is because it takes a lot longer than Earth to complete its orbit around the Sun.