Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and is named after the Roman god of war.
It is often called the red planet due to its reddish-orange appearance, which is caused by rust in the rocks.
1 Martian day = 24.61 Earth hours; 1 Martian year= 1.88 Earth years.
Mars has two irregularly shaped small moons called Phobos and Deimos, which are probably captured asteroids.
Mars has the highest peak in the entire solar system: Olympus Mons. It is three times the size of Mount Everest
Mars is a terrestrial planet with its atmosphere composed of 95.7% carbon dioxide and 2.7% nitrogen. Unlike Earth, Mars does not have a magnetic field, metal core, or a protective ozone layer. The southern hemisphere of Mars is heavily cratered, indicating meteor impacts in its past.
Mars has been the subject of great research and space exploration due to its proximity to Earth and its potential for life. Because of the presence of carbonates, scientists think that liquid water and even life may have once existed on Mars. There have been many missions to Mars, the most recent of which is the NASA rover Curiosity, which is currently studying the Martian surface.