Mars
Mars, Earth's outer neighbor, is the fourth planet from the Sun. Mars' bright appearance and reddish color stand out in the night sky. Impressive surface features such as enormous volcanoes and valleys are frequently obscured by huge dust storms.
Visit another planet: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Dwarf Planets
What's New on the Site?
When Nature Strikes - Earthquakes
When Nature Strikes - Volcanoes
When Nature Strikes: Tsunami Classroom Activity
When Nature Strikes: Wildfires - Why are they a challenge to stop?
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Interior and Surface of Mars
The uniquely red global surface of Mars is marked by many interesting features - some like ...Read more
Atmosphere of Mars
The atmosphere of Mars is much thinner than that of Earth, with a surface pressure averaging ...Read more
Moons of Mars
Mars has two small moons, Phobos and Deimos. The red planet does not have any rings. ...Read more
The Poles of Mars
The North and South Poles on Mars are similar to the polar regions on Earth in many ways. They ...Read more
Planetary Facts
All of the relevant information about Mars collected on one page, including details about size, orbit ...Read more
Myth and Culture
Mars was the son of Jupiter and Juno, and was the Roman god of war. Mars was the lover of Venus ...Read more
Missions to Mars
In the past few decades, the Russian and American space agencies have sent many spacecraft ...Read more
Images and Multimedia
Access wonderful captioned photos and illustrations that will inspire and excite you. ...Read more
Mars Links
These are links to other great web sites about Mars. But beware: you don't want to get caught ...Read moreMore about Mars
- Latest News from Mars
- Discovery of Mars
- Animation showing the orbit of Mars
- Tours
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Did you know?
Did you know that the ionosphere makes radio communication possible?Do you know the difference between meteors, meteoroids, and meteorites?
Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day
Do you know what this word or phrase means?Orographic lift
xOrographic lift : Occurs when an air mass is forced to rise over geographic relief from a lower elevation. As the air mass rises it expands and cools adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100%, create clouds and precipitation.
Click on the word to find out!
Research Highlights
New Computer Model Advances Climate Change Research
Scientists can now study climate change in far more detail with powerful new computer software released by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo. The Community Earth System...Read more
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Real Climate: climate science from climate scientists
Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information.
