|rotatespeed=465.11 m/s
|axialtilt=25.19°<ref name=marsfact/>
|mass=6.4185 * × 10<sup>23</sup> kg<ref name=marsfact/>
|density=3,933 kg/m³<ref name=marsfact/>
|surfacegrav=3.71 m/s²<ref name=marsfact/>
|color=Red
|albedo=0.15<ref name=marsfact/>
|pmdm=2.1 * × 10<sup>18</sup> N-m/T<ref name=Humphreys>Humphreys, D. R. "[http://www.creationresearch.org/crsq/articles/21/21_3/21_3.html The Creation of Planetary Magnetic Fields]." ''[[Creation Research Society Quarterly]]'' 21(3), December 1984. Accessed April 29, 2008.</ref>|cmdm=1.51 * × 10<sup>23</sup> N-m/T<ref name=Humphreys/>
|mdt=535 a<ref name=Humphreys/>
|mhl=370.83 a<ref name=calc>Calculated</ref>
}}
'''Mars''' is the fourth planet from the [[Sun]], after [[Mercury]], [[Venus]], and [[Earth]]. It is called "The Red Planet" on account of the [[iron oxide ]] that covers much of its suface.
== Ancient knowledge and naming ==
== Orbital characteristics ==
Mars is in a highly [[ellipse|elliptical ]] [[orbit ]] around the Sun and maintains an average distance slightly more than 1.5 AU. The synodic period of Mars is roughly 26 months. This fact makes Mars a particularly difficult object to explore, because opportunities to launch a rocket probe to Mars occur so far apart in time.
== Rotational characteristics ==
== Physical characteristics ==
Mars is half the size of Earth and has about 11% of earth's mass. The large proportion of [[iron]] in Mars' clay-like topsoil gives Mars its distinctive red color.
The weather on Mars is seasonal, on account of Mars's axial inclination. Yet because Mars's orbit is so eccentric, "summer" and "winter" on the northern and southern hemispheres can vary greatly. Temperatures vary from 140 K to 300 K, with an average temperature of 210 K. (The freezing point of [[water]] is 273.15 K.)
=== Atmosphere ===
Mars' atmosphere is quite thin and has an average pressure of 6.36 mb or 0.636% of that of earth. Its chief components are 95.32% [[carbon dioxide]], 2.7% [[nitrogen]], 1.6% [[argon]], 0.13% [[oxygen]], and 0.08% [[carbon monoxide]]. In addition it has trace amounts of [[water]] (210 ppm), [[nitrogen oxide]] (100 ppm), [[neon]] (2.5 ppm), hydrogen-deuterium oxide (HDO) (0.85 ppm), [[krypton]] (0.3 ppm), and [[xenon]] (0.08 ppm). Winds on Mars vary in speed from 2-7 2–7 m/s in summer to 5-10 5–10 m/s in fall, though the [[Project Viking]] landers have recorded winds varying from 17-30 17–30 m/s during dust storms that have swept past the landing sites.<ref name=marsfact/>
Recent warming trends on Mars, including an apparent partial melt of the polar ice caps, have led at least one scientist to question the widely circulating theories of [[global warming]] on earth. Specifically, Habibullo Abdussamatov, head of space research at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Astronomical Observatory in Russia, asserts that the sun, and not any activity specific to the earth, must be responsible for any warming observed on either planet.<ref name=ngs>Ravilious, Kate. "[http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/02/070228-mars-warming.html Mars Melt Hints at Solar, Not Human, Cause for Warming, Scientist Says]." ''National Geographic News'', National Geographic Society, February 28, 2007. Accessed May 27, 2008.</ref>
=== Magnetosphere ===
Mars has a very weak magnetic field. Data from various missions has established an upper limit of 2.1 * × 10<sup>18</sup> N-m/T on the [[magnetic dipole moment]] of Mars. According to [[Russell Humphreys]]'s model of the creation of magnetic fields, Mars probably had a magnetic dipole moment ''at creation'' of 1.51 * × 10<sup>23</sup> N-m/T. Thus Mars's magnetic field has been decaying very rapidly. This tremendous decay, and the presence on [[Mercury]] of a [[magnetic field ]] of significant strength, baffles [[astronomy|astronomersastronomer]] s who have assumed that magnetic fields form on rapidly moving planets that have conductive and liquid cores that can act as dynamos. In fact, Humphreys asserts that the characteristic that determines which of the [[Terrestrial Planet|terrestrial planets]] will have a persistent magnetic field is the core radius, and that the cores of all four of these planets have similar conductivities. Mercury and Earth have larger cores than do Mars and Venus. The lengths of the sidereal days on those worlds do not matter.<ref name=Humphreys/>
=== Geology ===
[[Image:MarsTopoMap-PIA02031 modest.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Topographic map of Mars.]]
There is a dichotomy on the surface of Mars; the northern hemisphere consists of low-lying volcanic plains, with the southern hemisphere consists of ancient, heavily-cratered highland plains. Mars also has two volcanic regions: Tharsis and Elysium. Within the Tharsis region is the largest volcano in the solar system, [[Olympus Mons]]. Olympus Mons is approximately 500 km across and is about the same size as the state of [[Arizona]]. Its peak is 24 km above the surrounding plains and it is surrounded by a vertical scarp 6 km high. A large canyon system, Valles Marineris, is located along the Martian equator east of the Tharsis region. Valles Marineris is 2-6km 2–6 km deep and 200-600km 200–600 km wide and approximately 4,500 km long (approximately the distance from San Francisco to Boston). The eastern part of Valles Marineris appears to have a tectonic origin, but the western part is characterized by features such as teardrop islands and longitudinal grooves, indicating it may have been formed by catastrophic flooding in the past. Such flooding may be possible under current climate conditions. Run-off channels in the cratered highland indicate a thicker atmosphere or warmer climate in the past that would have allowed water to be stable on the surface.
Recent satellite imagery has shown that Mars has a 3 kilometre deep ice cap around its polar regions. The northern polar region is surrounded by [[dune]] fields. During the Martian winter, a layer of carbon dioxide condenses at the poles and sublimates in the summer, leaving the water-ice and dust polar caps exposed. The ratio of dust to water-ice contained in the polar caps remains unknown.
[[Image:F035a72_processed.jpg|thumb|100px|left|Cydonia Mensae, home of the alleged "face on Mars."]]
Persistent rumors tell of a "face on Mars," allegedly located in the Cydonia Mensae region at coordinates 40.9°N and 9.45°W. This alleged "face" is located in the midst of several pyramids and other mountains. Prevailing opinion at NASA is that the "face" is a [[pareidolia|trick of the eye ]] due to the unusual lighting conditions.<ref name=faq>Williams, David R. "[http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planetaryfaq.html#Mars Frequently Asked Questions - Planetary - Mars]." National Space Science Data Center, [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration|NASA]], January 2, 2008. Accessed May 27, 2008.</ref>
=== Water on Mars ===
More recently, NASA's latest mission, the [[Phoenix lander]], has discovered what appears to be water ice very near the surface near Mars' north pole. Furthermore, analysis of a cubic meter of soil at this site reveals that the soil is far more [[alkali]]ne than expected, and has tolerable levels of salt and low levels of [[calcium]]. Investigators have even suggested that the soil might support the growth of an Earth vegetable, like [[asparagus]].<ref name=courier>"[http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,23932393-5013016,00.html Scientists find soil on Mars good enough to grow asparagus]." ''The Courier Mail'', June 28, 2008. Accessed June 30, 2008.</ref>
On 28 September 2015 NASA held a press conference confirming that Mars indeed have briny, liquid water on its surface, leeching from the ground. While it had been theorized for some time, NASA has now confirmed it.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/29/science/space/mars-life-liquid-water.html?_r=0</ref>
== Life on Mars ==
Current speculation concerns the possible finding of [[microbe]]s. These would be [[extremophile]]s, or microbes that survive and even grow in environments lethal to other forms of life. Direct attempts to find such life began in 1976 with the [[Viking 1]] and [[Viking 2]] landers. To date no positive sign of life on Mars has been found. The Viking landers found evidence of unexplained chemical activity, but no clear evidence of microbes. Whether the Viking landers would have been able to detect extremophiles, a concept unknown to the Viking mission planners, is unclear.<ref name=Hamilton/>
The [[astrobiology|astrobiologists]] involved with [[Project Viking]] suspect that Mars might be an inherently inhospitable environment for life. Ultraviolet light from the sun shines unchecked on Mars, on account of Mars' thin atmosphere and weak magnetic field. The soil of Mars is also very dry, and the soil has a high proportion of [[oxidizing agents]].<ref name=Hamilton/>
== Problem for uniformitarian theories ==
Mars has been the subject of more attempts to explore it, and more failures, than any other planet. Of approximately 37 separate missions to Mars, only 13 have had any success. The planetary scientists of the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics]], so successful in exploring [[Venus]], experienced ten mission failures before achieving their first success, seven years after the [[United States]] achieved success with its [[Mariner 4]] mission. That Soviet mission, [[Mars 3]] in 1971, succeeded in placing a lander on Mars, but the lander's system transmitted for only 20 seconds before failing.
In 1975, [[Project Viking]] achieved the most notable success by placing two orbiters and two landers on Mars. Neither nation would attempt any further missions to Mars until 1988, when the Soviets lost one craft en route and lost contact with the other ([[Phobos 2]] ) seconds after its rendezvous with Mars's inner [[moon]] [[Phobos]]. Nor was the United States' program immune to failure; its ''Mars Observer'' vessel was lost prior to arrival after some propulsion systems failed.<ref name=faq/>
In 1996 the [[Mars Global Surveyor]] enjoyed the most success to date, returning more images than all previous missions combined. In that same year, the United States landed the first mobile explorer, or "rover," called the [[Mars Pathfinder]].
At least one non-governmental group, calling itself the Mars Society, has been actively studying technologies appropriate to send a crew of from four to six astronauts to Mars for a roughly two-year stay.<ref name=marssoc>[http://www.marssociety.org/portal The Mars Society] global and USA portal. Accessed May 27, 2008.</ref>
In 2012 a rover called "[[Mars Science Laboratory|Curiosity]]" landed on the Mars. The rover is controlled by the [[NASA]] on Earth and in 2013 it could even drill in the Mars.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/msl/multimedia/pia16728.html|title=Ready, Set, Drill|accessdate=2018-12-22}}</ref>
Elon Musk is "highly confident" SpaceX will land humans on Mars by 2026.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eurovamarketing.com/post/mars-planet-what-plants-can-be-deployed-on-mars-what-are-the-difficulties-is-that-even-possible|title=Mars Planet - What plants can be deployed on Mars? What are the difficulties? Is that even possible?|access-date=March 2, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/12/01/elon-musk-highly-confident-spacex-will-land-humans-on-mars-by-2026.html|title=Elon Musk is ‘highly confident’ SpaceX will land humans on Mars by 2026|access-date=March 2, 2021}}</ref>
==Satellites==
Mars has two moons: [[Phobos]] and [[Deimos]] (which respectively mean "Fear and "Panic" in [[Greek language|Greek]]). Russian scientists in the 1950s posited that Phobos might be hollow, but these claims were discredited in the late 1960s.
== References ==
* [http://www.solarviews.com/eng/terms.htm Glossary]
* [http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/arj/v1/n1/mars-testament-catastrophe Mars, a Testament to Catastrophe]
* [httphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnOhFXamYOc Catastrophic Model of Martian Geology I] Video* [httphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HwZ22eYhAg Catastrophic Model of Martian Geology II]Video
*[http://genesismission.4t.com/Video/Mars1.html Catastrophic Model of Martian Geology] With Video