5 FACTS ABOUT MARS THAT YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T KNOW.
Over the past few months, Mars has been shining brightly in the night sky and each time I look up and see a glowing yellow-orange star, I am filled with exhilaration about the prospect of the human species setting foot on this beautiful planet in the near future.
The exploration of Mars has been a goal of national space programs for decades and although no human being has set foot on the Red Planet(well, apart from Matt Damon from the Martian film), landers and rovers have explored the planetary surface and delivered information about conditions on the ground. It is expected that human beings will set foot on Mars at least by 2030 according to NASA. However, Elon Musk’s Space X Mars program could launch as early as 2024 and in his words,“ if we get lucky”.
Given the huge interest attached to this planet, here are some interesting facts about it that you probably didn’t know.
5.The Planet is named for the Roman god of war.
According to ancient Roman myth, Mars was the Roman god of war and also an agricultural guardian. Mars represented military power as a way to secure peace and was the father of the Roman people.
The planet is named after him because of its red color, which suggests blood. A long-standing nickname for Mars is the “Red Planet”.
4.World of Wind and Dust.
Exposed to the ravages of wind for eons, the barren surface of Mars has been shaped and sculpted into terrains of grandeur and beauty. Strong and relentless, the Martian winds are still changing the landforms of Mars today.
Because Mars’ atmosphere is so thin, high wind velocities are needed to move sand and dust. Surface winds typically move about 16 to 32 kilometers per hour.
During dust storms, the Viking Landers ( first U.S. spacecrafts to land safely on the surface of Mars and return images) measured wind speeds of up to 113 kilometers per hour.
3.Mars is home to the tallest planetary mountain and home to one of the largest canyons in the solar system.
Mars is the site of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano and highest known mountain on any planet in the solar system. With a height of over 21 kilometers as measured by the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter, this makes it about two and a half times Mount Everest’s height above sea level and whilst Rheasilvea Mons located on the asteroid Vesta gets named the tallest peak in the solar system at 22.5 kilometers, it cannot be classified as a planetary mountain due to its location on an asteroid.
Valles Marineris is a system of canyons that runs along the Martian surface, mostly east to west just below the equator.
At more than 3000 kilometers long, 600 kilometers wide and 8 kilometers deep, Valles Marineris is one of the largest canyons in the solar system, surpassed in length only by the Rift Valleys of Earth . Valles Marineris is also referred to as the ‘Grand Canyon of Mars’.
2. Mars Exploration Rovers & Missions.
Since the 1960’s mankind has launched dozens of missions to Mars in an effort to know our planetary neighbor better. Some have been flybys and others orbiters that lasted years as they travelled around the planet.
Although the first few flyby attempts failed, NASA’s Mariner 4 spacecraft was the first to fly by Mars on July 14,1965 and sent 21 photos of the Red planet back to earth. In 1996, NASA launched the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) space probe which mapped the Red planet from pole to pole revealing many ancient signs of water, such as gullies and hematite (a mineral that forms in water). Data from the MGS helped NASA decide where to land its future Mars rovers.
The discovery of ancient water evidence on Mars sparked a renaissance in Mars exploration. NASA’s two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, were sent to the surface of Mars in 2004 with each discovering ample evidence that water once flowed on the Red Planet. NASA’s more powerful rover called Curiosity arrived at Gale Crater on Mars in 2012 to search for signs of ancient habitable environments. Major findings include finding previously water-soaked areas, detecting methane on the surface and finding organic compounds.
The latest mission to Mars is the Mars 2020 which is a Mars rover mission by NASA that includes the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter drone. It will touch down in Jezero Crater on Mars on February 18,2021. Its main job is to seek signs of ancient life and collect samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) for a possible return to earth.
1. Distance, Moons, Size, Martian year, Gravity, Surface temperature & Atmosphere.
Mars is the forth planet in order of distance from the Sun and seventh in size and mass. It’s a periodically conspicuous reddish object in the night sky and is designated by the symbol ♂.
Mars has two natural moons, Phobos and Deimos, which are relatively small compared to Earth’s moon. Phobos has a diameter of about 23 kilometers while Deimos of about 12 kilometers. Their origin is still unknown but scientists suggest that the two bodies were wandering in the solar system and were captured by Mars’ gravity as they passed nearby.
Mars has a diameter of 6,779 kilometers which is slightly more than half of Earth’s diameter.
The length of a year on Mars is almost twice as long as a year on Earth at 687 Earth days and similar to Earth, Mars has four distinct seasons. Each season lasts about twice as long as one on Earth due to the length of a year on Mars. A day on Mars lasts 24hrs and 37 minutes.
Gravity on Mars is 0.375 that of Earth which means that if you weighed 100lb on Earth, you would only weigh 38lb on Mars!
The surface temperature on Mars is about minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit (-62.22 degrees Celsius) which is way below freezing.
Earth’s atmosphere is over 100 times denser than that on Mars and it mainly consists of Carbon dioxide, Argon and Nitrogen though there are traces of oxygen, water vapor, methane, carbon monoxide and other gases.
With more and more missions being planned to explore the Red Planet, it is just a matter of time before human beings set foot on Mars. The use of Artificial Intelligence in the planet’s exploration can be seen in the self driving rovers and in establishment of theories such as Mars used to have water on its surface and its use will massively aid in interplanetary travel.
There is still some way to go but certainly these are exciting times.
*NASA- National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
