In Depth | Mars – NASA Solar System Exploration
The fourth planet from the Sun, Mars is one of Earth's two closest planetary neighbors (Venus is the other). Mars is one of the easiest planets to spot in the night sky – it looks like a bright red point of light.
Overview | Mars – NASA Solar System Exploration
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun – a dusty, cold, desert world with a very thin atmosphere. Mars is also a dynamic planet with seasons, polar ice caps, canyons, extinct volcanoes, and evidence that it was even more active in the past.
What is a Planet? | Planets – NASA Solar System Exploration
Everyone knows that Earth, Mars and Jupiter are planets. But both Pluto and Ceres were once considered planets until new discoveries triggered scientific debate about how to best describe them—a vigorous debate that continues to this day.
In Depth | Our Solar System – NASA Solar System Exploration
Our solar system consists of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity – the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets such as Pluto; dozens of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and meteoroids.
Planet Compare - NASA Solar System Exploration
6 days ago · NASA’s real-time science encyclopedia of deep space exploration. Our scientists and far-ranging robots explore the wild frontiers of our solar system.
Mars By the Numbers – NASA Solar System Exploration
6 days ago · Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun, and the seventh largest. It’s the only planet we know of inhabited entirely by robots.
In Depth | Phobos – NASA Solar System Exploration
Phobos, gouged and nearly shattered by a giant impact crater and beaten by thousands of meteorite impacts, is on a collision course with Mars. Phobos is the larger of Mars' two moons and is 17 x 14 x 11 miles (27 by 22 by 18 kilometers) in diameter.
Mars 3D Model - NASA Solar System Exploration
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60,000 Orbits for NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
May 15, 2019 · NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) hit a dizzying milestone this morning: It completed 60,000 loops around the Red Planet at 10:39 a.m. PDT (1:39 p.m. EDT). On average, MRO takes 112 minutes to circle Mars, whipping around at about 2 miles per second (3.4 kilometers per second).
10 Things to Know about Dawn - NASA Solar System Exploration
Jul 16, 2018 · 9. Dawn could provide insights into the history of our own planet. The main asteroid belt may have been a source of water for planets in the inner solar system, in particular Earth and Mars. Ceres provides clues about how water, an essential ingredient for …