The story for kids
This is Mars, the red planet. It's red because its ground is rusty, like an old iron car. Mars has mountains, valleys, and a volcano that is much, much taller than our tallest mountain. It's cold there, and the air is very thin, so you can't breathe without a space suit. Robots live on Mars. They're rovers with wheels. They drive around, take pictures, and study rocks. Mars has two little moons, Phobos and Deimos.
Facts
- It is red because its dust is full of rusty iron.
- Olympus Mons is the tallest volcano we know – about 2.5 times taller than Everest.
- Robot rovers have been exploring it for years.
Numbers
- Size (Earth = 1)
- 0,53
- Year
- 687 days
- One turn
- 24 h 37 min
- Moons
- 2
For grown-ups
This is Mars, the red planet. It is red because its dust is full of rusted iron. Mars is home to the tallest volcano we know of, Olympus Mons, which is about two and a half times taller than Mount Everest. A day on Mars is almost as long as a day on Earth, twenty-four hours and thirty-seven minutes, but its year lasts six hundred and eighty-seven days. Mars has two small moons, Phobos and Deimos. For many years now, robotic rovers have been driving across its surface and studying it. Perhaps one day people will fly to Mars too.