Mars Printout

Research Plan Printout

• How far is Mars from the Sun?

  • Mars is the fourth closest planet to the Sun.

  • It is between Earth and Jupiter.

  • Mars has an average distance of 140 million miles from the Sun.

  • Mars is  an average distance of 229 million kilometers from the Sun. 

  • Mars is  1.52 AU* from the Sun.

   

• How big is Mars? 

  • Mars is about half the size of the Earth; it is about .53 the size of Earth.

  • Mars is the seventh largest planet.  This means that only two planets are smaller, Mercury and Pluto.

  • Mars has a diameter of 6800 km, about half that of Earth.

   

• Why is this planet named Mars?

  • Mars was given its name by the Romans in honor of their god of war, Mars. 

  • Mars was a favorite god of the Romans.

  • Legends say that Mars was the father of Romulus and Remus, twins who were said to have founded Rome.
  • Mars was also the god of war.
  • The blood-like color of the planet reminded the ancients of their bloody wars.

   

• What does Mars look like?

         

  • Mars is called the Red Planet because it has a red or pink hue when viewed from Earth.  Scientists now think the surface is more of a butterscotch color than it is red.  It is the color it is thanks to the large amounts of dust that covers it. The dust, an iron-rich material that forms as a product of weathering, coats the planet like a mantle of rust. 

  • Mars has been known to humans since ancient times.  The Egyptians name for Mars is Har Decher  which means, The Red One.

  • Mars has two moons named Phobos and Deimos.  The moons are named after the mythical horses that drew the chariot of the Roman war god Mars.

  • We are learning more about the surface of the planet all the time.

  • We now know that Mars has the largest volcano in the solar system.  It is called Olympus Mons and is three times higher that Mount Everest, Earth's highest mountain.

• Can we see Mars in the sky at night?

  • Yes.  To see if it is visible now, check the Sky Maps.

  • On August 27, 2003 Mars will be/was slightly closer to Earth than it has/had been for 60 million years. 

    • Here's Why

     

  *One AU (Astronomical Unit) is the distance from the center of the Earth to the center of the             Sun.

  1 AU = 149,597,870.691 kilometers

  Definition: An Astronomical Unit is the mean distance between the Earth and the Sun. It is a              derived constant and used to indicate distances within a solar system. The Earth orbits             at a distance of 1 AU from the Sun.

Information on this page was taken from the following websites:

• The-Solar-System.Net
• Introduction to Mars

Links to Other Sites

• Explore a Planet - Mars
• Astronomy for Kids
• Is the Red Planet Really Red?

Books and References 

• Wethered, Peggy. Touchdown Mars! : An ABC Adventure. NY: Putnam, c2000.

  RL 2.6

  Dewey 919.9

• Branley, Franklyn. Mission to Mars. NY: HarperCollins, c2002.

  RL 2.7

  Dewey 629.4

• Rau, Dana M. Mars. Minneapolis, MN: Compass Point Books, c2002.

  RL 3.4

  Dewey 523.43

• Vogt, Gregory. Mars. Brookfield, CN: Millbrook Press, c1994.

  RL 5.7

  Dewey 523.43

• Shearer, Deborah A. Exploring Mars. Mankato, MN: Bridgestone Books, c2003.

  RL 4.8

  Dewey 523.43