Facts about Mars
How much do you know about the Red Planet?
Calling all budding young space cadets! Join us on an out-of-this-world adventure with our fascinating facts about Mars…
Facts about Mars
1) Named after the Roman God of war, Mars is the fourth planet from the sun in our solar system.
2) Mars is also known as the ‘Red Planet’ because, well, it’s red! This signature colour comes from the large amount of a chemical called iron oxide (or ‘rust’ as you might know it) in its rocks and soil.
3) 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.
4) 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. Brr!
5) 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!
Did you know…? There are bits of Mars here on Earth! In the past, asteroids hit the Red Planet, sending debris into space. Some of this debris landed on our planet as meteorites.
6) You could jump around three times higher on Mars than you can on Earth. Boing! This is because the planet’s gravity – the force that keeps us on the ground – is much weaker.
7) Do you like to look at the moon at night? Well, check this out –– Mars has two moons! One is called Phobos and the other Deimos.
8) 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.
Did you know that we have a FREE downloadable Mars primary resource? Great for teachers, homeschoolers and parents alike!
9) Until recently, scientists believed that there was no liquid water on the surface of Mars –– only rocks, soil dust and ice. But… News flash! In 2018, they found evidence of a lake under the planet’s south polar ice cap. Exciting stuff!
10) Humans have not yet been to Mars, but scientists have sent spacecraft there to help them research this fascinating planet. The first spacecraft to land on Mars were the Viking Landers, which touched down on the surface in 1976.
Want to learn more? Check out our facts about Earth, discover top Moon facts and learn about world-famous astronaut Neil Armstrong.
What did you think of our facts about Mars? Leave a comment below and let us know!
Likes
LEAVE A COMMENT
THANK YOU
Your comment will be checked and approved shortly.
WELL DONE,
YOUR COMMENT
HAS BEEN ADDED!
COMMENTS
cool
I'm doing a project and it really helps
this is for school and its helping me lot!
I love Mars so much
this website is amazing good gob keep up the work.
So cool!
soooo cool
nice
WoW
cool
I love Mars!
wow
Nice
I have never been on mars
Hi
cool
NICE
hello
cool
wow
Nice
cool
wow
THANK YOU! HELPS SOOOOO MUCH!
this is amazing
this helped a lot with my presentation
okay
love it
This helped me a lot!
Nice
hi
cool!
AMAZING
wow
EPIC
hi
NICE
cool
WOWSERS
wow
COOL!
Amzing
This is just AWESOME!
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow!
nice
love it
this is so cool
nice
epic
this was very usefull
These facts really helped me for my school work
hi this is an amazing website
Cool!!!
These facts were useful for my space project. I chose to do it about Mars!
so cool
nice
nice
Great you helped me do my homework!!
COOL
Cool
EPIC!
Nice
wow
Wow
wow,cool
wow,cool
wow
ive got really great infomation of this
WOw
good to know
lets take action
cool
Educational
cool
Mars
lets take action
nice
cool
wow!
cool
Interesting
thank you this was amazing
OMG!
That's so cool
Noice
cool
cool
Intresting