RENEE M. CONDORI APAZA
ARC – NASA2009 - CALIFORNIA
Information of Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and is commonly referred to as the Red Planet. The rocks and soil have a red or pink hue due to the iron oxiode (rust) they contain.
Location
Mars -- the real planet 1.5 AU from Sun
Diameter ~ ½ Earth
Mass ~ 1/10 Earth
Density 3.9 gm/cm3
Period 687d ~ 2 yrs
Rotation 24h 37m
Inclination 24o
Atm – thin, low density
CO2 95%
N 3%
A r 2%
H2O trace – clouds, ice caps
Cold, dry planet – weak greenhouse
Max 70F summer, Min -140F
Earth and Mars Comparison
EarthEarth MarsMars
RadiusRadius 6378 km6378 km 3397 km3397 km
DensityDensity 5515 kg/m5515 kg/m33 3933 kg/m3933 kg/m33
GravityGravity 9.8 m/s9.8 m/s22 3.72 m/s3.72 m/s22
YearYear 365.25 days365.25 days 686.98 days686.98 days
EccentricityEccentricity 0.0170.017 0.0940.094
DayDay 24 hours24 hours 24 hr 39 min24 hr 39 min
ObliquityObliquity 23.45º23.45º 25.19º25.19º
Hubble Telescope Picture of Mars
This NASA Hubble Space Telescope view provides the most detailed complete global coverage of the red planet Mars ever seen from Earth. This picture was taken on February 25, 1995, when Mars was at a distance of 65 million miles.
Atmosphere on Mars
Mars has a rocky, dry terrain with huge volcanoes and deep valleys. The atmosphere is much thinner than Earth’s and is comprised primarily of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. It’s gravity is about one-third of our own.
The surface on Mars
Surface Color: “Red” Surface Color: “Red” FeaturesFeatures– Impact CratersImpact Craters– Largest volcano in the Largest volcano in the
solar systemsolar system(Olympus Mons)(Olympus Mons)
– Largest Canyon in the Largest Canyon in the Solar SystemSolar System(Valles Marineris)(Valles Marineris)
– Ancient river channelsAncient river channels– Lava RocksLava Rocks– Dust: Reddish from Dust: Reddish from
volcanic rockvolcanic rock
Water on Mars?
Sinusoidal channels
Laminated terrain
Ice Caps
Largest Volcano on Mars
The largest volcano in the solar system is Olympus Mons. It is 624 km (374 miles) in diameter; about the same size as Arizona.The altitude of Olympus Mons is three times the altitude of the largest peak on Earth, Mt. Everest.
Gigantic Canyon
Valles Marineris, or Mariner Valley, is a vast canyon system that runs along the Martian equator. Valles Marineris is 2500 miles long and reaches depths of up to 4 miles.
Gigantic Canyon
For comparison, the Grand Canyon in Arizona is about 500 miles long and 1 mile deep. In fact, the extent of Valles Marineris is as long as the United States and it spans about 20 percent (1/5) of the entire distance around Mars.
Seasons on Mars
Like Earth, Mars has seasonal changes but the seasons last much longer. In Winter, Mars’ polar ice cap can reach down to 45 degrees latitude and then rapidly shrink during Spring. Dust storms are seasonal, also, as witnessed in this Hubble image.
Earth/Mars Comparison
Distance from Sun 141.6 Million Miles 93 Million Miles
Diameter 4222 Miles 7926 Miles
Length of Year 687 Earth Days 365.25 Days
Length of Day 24 hours 37 minutes 23 hours 56 minutes
Gravity .375 that of Earth 2.66 times that of Mars
Temperature Average -81 degrees F Average 57 degrees F
Temperature Range -127 C to 17 C -88 C to 58 C
Number of Moons 2 1
Mars Earth
Mars, the god of War
The planet was named after Mars, the Roman God of War, who was one of the most worshipped and revered gods in ancient Rome. The god Mars held a special place in the Roman Pantheon not only for his patronly influence, but because of the importance of military achievement in the republic and the Roman Empire.
Early concepts
Before space exploration, Mars was considered the best candidate for harboring extraterrestrial life. Italian astronomer, Giovanni Schiaparelli thought he saw straight lines crisscrossing its surface. This led to the popular belief that irrigation canals on the planet had been constructed by intelligent beings.
Mariner missions
In July of 1965, Mariner 4, transmitted 22 close-up pictures of Mars. All that was revealed was a surface containing many craters and naturally occurring channels but no evidence of artificial canals or flowing water.
Viking Landers
Finally, in July and September 1976, Viking Landers 1 and 2 touched down on the surface of Mars. The three biology experiments aboard the landers discovered unexpected and enigmatic chemical activity in the Martian soil, but provided no clear evidence for the presence of living microorganisms in the soil near the landing sites.
Viking Landers
According to scientists, Mars is self-sterilizing. They believe the combination of solar ultraviolet radiation that saturates the surface, the extreme dryness of the soil and the oxidizing nature of the soil chemistry prevent the formation of living organisms in the Martian soil. The question of life on Mars at some time in the distant past remains open.
The First Rover
Mars Pathfinder was the first instrumented lander and robotic rover to study the surface of Mars. Findings from the investigations carried out by scientific instruments on both the lander and the rover suggest that Mars was at one time in its past warm and wet, with water existing in its liquid state and a thicker atmosphere.
Mars Exploration Rovers
The Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, are currently studying how past water activity on Mars has influenced the red planet's environment over time.
Artist’s Concept Image: NASA
Spirit
In March 2005, Spirit studied rocks in the “Paso Robles” area that have a high sulfur content. Much of the high sulfur is contained in a hydrated iron-sulfate mineral that can only have formed in the presence of liquid water.
Opportunity
Opportunity’s spectrometer and microscopic imager found that rocks near the lower slopes of Endurance Crater were affected by water both before and after the crater formed.
NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars' past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Curiosity is being tested in preparation for launch in the fall of 2011.
NASA's Curiosity Mars RoverTo handle this science toolkit, Curiosity is twice as long and five times as heavy as Spirit or Opportunity. The Gale Crater landing site places the rover within driving distance of layers of the crater's interior mountain. Observations from orbit have identified clay and sulfate minerals in the lower layers, indicating a wet history.
Curiosity
Future Exploration of Mars