In which hemisphere is Mars. Mars is a mysterious red planet. What is the visibility

And the seventh in size and weight. Mount Olympus is located here, the highest famous mountain in the solar system and the Mariner Valley, the canyon itself. In addition to geographic features, Mars' orbital periods and seasonal cycles are also Earth-like.

Mars is a rarefied atmosphere. On Mars there are meteorite craters like on, volcanoes, valleys and deserts, similar to those on Earth.

The orbit of Mars is located about 1.5 times farther from the Sun than. Over a relatively elongated orbit, the distance between Mars and the Sun changes from 207 million km at perihelion to 250 million km at aphelion. A year on Mars lasts 687 days, which is almost twice as long as on Earth. Mars rotates on its axis with a period of 24 hours 37 minutes, only slightly longer than on Earth.

Mars also sees seasons that are almost double in duration. Through an elliptical orbit, the seasons in the northern and southern hemispheres have different lengths: summer in the northern hemisphere lasts 177 Martian days, and in the southern one it is 21 days shorter and 20 degrees warmer than summer in the northern hemisphere.

The orbits of Mars and Earth practically lie in the same plane (the angle between them is 2 degrees). The axis of rotation of Mars is tilted at an angle of 25.2 degrees from the perpendicular to the orbital plane and is directed to the Cygnus Constellation.

Every 780 days, the Earth and Mars are at a minimum distance from each other, which varies from 56 to 101 million km. Such rapprochements are called confrontation. If the distance is less than 60 million km, then they are called great. Great confrontations are observed every 15-17 years.

Mars is a small planet, larger than but slightly larger than half the size of Earth. The planet Mars has an equatorial radius of 3396 km and an average polar radius of 3379 km, both reported by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, which began its first mission in orbit around the planet in 1999. Mars has a mass of 6418 × 10 ² ³ kg, which is ten times less than the mass of the Earth, and its acceleration due to gravity of 3.72 meters per second squared on the surface means that objects on Mars weigh only a third of their weight on the Earth's surface.

Due to its blood red color, it is sometimes referred to as the Red Planet. Mars has long been associated with war and bloodshed and is therefore named after the Roman god of war. The planet has two satellites, (Greek "Fear") and ("Horror"), which were named after the two sons of Ares and Aphrodite (Roman copies - Mars and respectively).

Mars has had a special place in popular culture for the past century. This has served as an inspiration for generations of science fiction writers. The mystery of the planet and many secrets remain an incentive for scientific research and human imagination to this day.

Physical characteristic

Geology.

According to orbital observations and expertise of Martian meteorites, the surface of Mars is composed primarily of basalt. Some evidence suggests that a portion of Mars' surface is richer in quartz than typical basalt. Most of the surface is covered with iron (III) oxide.

Martian rocks are represented by detrital porous rocks and aeolian sands. The density of Martian rocks on sandy plains is 1-1.6, on rocky plains - 1.8 (on the moon, for comparison, respectively: 1-1.3 and 1.5-2, 1). Particle size on the planet's surface: 10-100 microns - from 60% (sandy plains) to 30% (rocky plains), 100-2000 microns. - Accordingly, from 10% to 30%. The main components of Martian rocks% are iron (in some samples up to 14%), calcium, aluminum, silicon, sulfur. There is also strontium, zirconium, rubidium, titanium. According to the available data, the soil of Mars is a mixture of silicates and minerals of the oxide class with a significant content of sulfates (possibly hydrated). Sulfur is obviously present in sulfates. A large amount of red dust with a particle diameter of about 1 micron gives the planet's surface a reddish hue.

A characteristic feature of the surface of Mars is the presence of a cryosphere - ice H 2 O in the polar caps and in the soil. Modern data from Martian rocks indicate the existence of a chemically differentiated crust on Mars, analogous to the earth's crust.

In the center of Mars is a core with a diameter of about February 9,680 kilometers, consisting mainly of iron with about 14-17% sulfur content. This iron core is in a liquid state, and has twice the concentration of light elements than in the Earth's core. The core is surrounded by a mantle of silicates, which has formed many tectonic and volcanic features on the planet, but is no longer active. The average thickness of the planet's crust is about 50 km, the maximum thickness is 125 km.

The geological history of Mars can be broken down into many eras, but there are three main ones:

• Noyanska era(named after Noah; 3.8-3.5 billion years ago) The oldest existing objects on the surface of Mars formed.
• Hesperian era(3.5-1.8 billion years ago): In this era, vast plains formed off the bench.
• Amazon era(1.8 billion years ago to present): Mount Olympus formed along with other volcanic objects on Mars.

Temperature regime and atmosphere

For a greater distance from the Sun from all planets - Mars receives only 43% of the energy that the Earth receives. The average annual temperature there is -60 ° C. During the day, the surface temperature changes significantly. For example, in the southern hemisphere at a latitude of 50 degrees, the temperature in mid-autumn varies from -18 degrees (at noon) to -63 degrees (in the evening). However, at a depth of 25 m below the surface, the temperature is practically constant -60 ° C throughout the day and does not depend on the season. The maximum surface temperature values ​​do not exceed a few degrees above 0, and the minimum values ​​are recorded at the northern polar cap - minus 138 ° C.

The atmosphere of Mars is rather rarefied. Atmospheric pressure at the surface varies from about 0.3 mbar on Mount Olympus to over 12 mbar, with an average surface pressure of about 6.1 mbar. This is 160 times less than the average pressure at sea level on our planet (1 bar). The height of a homogeneous atmosphere is about 11 km, which is higher than Earth's (6 km) through lower gravity.

The atmosphere on Mars is 95% carbon dioxide, 3% nitrogen, 1.6% argon and contains traces of oxygen and water. The atmosphere is very dusty due to the huge amount of microparticles about 1.5 μm in diameter, which give the Martian sky a tinge-brown tint when viewed from the surface of the planet.

Satellites of Mars

The moons of Mars Phobos and Deimos

The first to suggest that Mars has moons was Johannes Kepler in 1610. When trying to decipher Galileo's anagram about the rings of Saturn ("I observe the highest planet in triplets"), Kepler decided that Galileo had discovered the satellites of Mars. In 1643, the Capuchin monk Anton Maria Shirl claimed to have seen the "Martian months." In 1727, Jonathan Swift, in The Adventures of Gulliver, described two small moons that were known to the astronomers of Laputa Island. They made a revolution around Mars in 10 and 21.5 hours. Voltaire recalled these satellites in 1750 in his novel "Micromegas". On July 10, 1744, German captain Kinderman reported that he had calculated the orbital period of the Martian satellite, which was 59 hours 50 minutes and 6 seconds. In 1877, the American astronomer Asaf Hall, working at the US Naval Observatory with the country's largest 26-inch Clark refractor, finally found Phobos and Deimos, two small moons of Mars. Their orbital periods were close to those suggested by Swift 150 years earlier.

Little was known about the two satellites of Mars Phobos and Deimos until the middle of the twentieth century, when they were observed by orbital spaceships... "Viking-1" flew within 100 km from the surface of Phobos, and "Viking-2" at a distance of 30 km from Deimos.

Both satellites are pieces of rock of an irregular, approximately ellipsoidal shape. The uneven surface of Phobos is completely covered with meteorite craters. The largest crater, Stickney, takes up half of the moon. Its surface is also covered with a system of linear fractures or depressions, many of which are geometrically associated with Stickney Crater. On the other hand, the surface of Deimos seems smooth, as many craters are almost completely covered with debris.

The albedo (ability to reflect light) in both satellites is very low, like in the simplest types of meteorites.

In 2010, a group of Italian astronomers from the National Institute of Astrophysics of Italy concluded that Phobos was formed from numerous debris thrown into orbit as a result of a super-powerful explosion on the planet's surface. Before that, there was a popular theory of the origin of satellites that they are asteroids that were captured by Mars when it was just beginning to form.

Phobos orbits Mars every 7 hours 39 minutes. The satellite is located 6,000 kilometers from the surface of the planet. It's so close that without an internal force, the satellite would be torn apart by gravitational forces. These forces are also slowing down Phobos and possibly causing a satellite to collide with Mars in less than 100 million years. Deimos is located in a distant orbit and periodic forces cause it to move away from the planet. Phobos and Deimos are not visible on Mars from all places due to their small size and proximity to the planet and to near-equatorial orbits.

Characteristics of the planet:

• Distance from the Sun: 227.9 million km
• Planet diameter: 6786 km*
• Day on the planet: 24h 37 min 23s**
• Year on the planet: 687 days***
• t ° on the surface: -50 ° C
• Atmosphere: 96% carbon dioxide; 2.7% nitrogen; 1.6% argon; 0.13% oxygen; possible presence of water vapor (0.03%)
• Satellites: Phobos and Deimos

* diameter at the equator of the planet
** period of rotation around its own axis (in Earth days)
*** period of orbit around the sun (in earth days)

The planet Mars is the fourth planet in the solar system, located at an average distance of 227.9 million kilometers from the sun, or 1.5 times farther from the earth. The planet has a more elongated orbit than the earth. The eccentric of Mars' rotation around the sun is more than 40 million kilometers. 206.7 million kilometers at perihelion and 249.2 at aphelion.

Presentation: Planet Mars

In orbit around the sun, Mars is accompanied by two small natural satellites Phobos and Demos. Their sizes are 26 and 13 km, respectively.

The average radius of the planet is 3390 kilometers - about half the earth's. The mass of the planet is almost 10 times less than that of the earth. And the surface area of ​​all Mars is only 28% of Earth's. This is slightly more than the area of ​​all earthly continents without oceans. Due to the small mass, the acceleration of gravity is 3.7 m / s², or 38% of the earth. That is, an astronaut weighing 80 kg on earth, will weigh a little more than 30 kg on Mars.

The Martian year is almost twice as long as the Earth's and is 780 days. But a day on the red planet, in duration, is almost the same as on earth and is 24 hours 37 minutes.

The average density of Mars is also lower than that of the earth and amounts to 3.93 kg / m³. internal structure Mars resembles the structure of the terrestrial planets. The planet's crust averages 50 kilometers, which is much more than on earth. The 1,800-kilometer-thick mantle is predominantly silicon, while the planet's 1,400-kilometer liquid core is 85 percent iron.

It was not possible to find any geological activity on Mars. However, Mars has been very active in the past. On Mars, geological events took place on a scale not seen on earth. On the red planet is the largest mountain in the solar system, Mount Olympus with a height of 26.2 kilometers. And also the deepest canyon (the Mariner Valley) up to 11 kilometers deep.

Cold world

Temperatures on the surface of Mars range from -155 ° C to +20 ° C at the equator at noon. Due to the very rarefied atmosphere and weak magnetic field solar radiation freely irradiates the planet's surface. Therefore, the existence of even the simplest life forms on the surface of Mars is unlikely. The density of the atmosphere at the surface of the planet is 160 times lower than at the surface of the Earth. The atmosphere is 95% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen and 1.6% argon. The share of other gases, including oxygen, is not significant.

The only phenomenon that is observed on Mars is dust storms, sometimes taking on a global Martian scale. Until recently, the nature of these phenomena was not understood. However, the last rovers sent to the planet managed to fix the dust vortices that arise on Mars constantly and can reach a wide variety of sizes. Apparently, when there are too many such vortices, they develop into a dust storm.

(Surface of Mars before the onset of a dust storm, dust only gathers in fog in the distance, as seen by artist Kees Veenenbos)

Dust covers almost the entire surface of Mars. Iron oxide gives the planet its red color. In addition, there can be quite a lot of water on Mars. Dried riverbeds and glaciers were found on the planet's surface.

Satellites of the planet Mars

Mars has 2 natural satellites orbiting the planet. These are Phobos and Deimos. I wonder what on Greek their names are translated as "fear" and "horror". And this is not surprising, because outwardly both satellites really inspire fear and horror. Their shapes are so irregular that they rather look like asteroids, while the diameters are quite small - Phobos 27 km, Deimos 15 km. The satellites consist of rocky rocks, the surface is in many small craters, only Phobos has a huge crater 10 km in diameter, almost 1/3 of the size of the satellite itself. Apparently in the distant past, a certain asteroid almost destroyed it. The satellites of the red planet are so reminiscent of asteroids in shape and structure that, according to one version, Mars itself once captured, subjugating and turning into its eternal servants.

The question of whether there is life on Mars has been haunting people for many decades. The mystery became even more relevant after suspicions arose about the presence of river valleys on the planet: if water streams once flowed through them, then the presence of life on the planet next to the Earth cannot be denied.

Mars, located between Earth and Jupiter, is the seventh largest planet in the solar system and fourth from the sun. The red planet is two times smaller than our Earth: its radius at the equator is almost 3.4 thousand km (the equatorial radius of Mars is twenty kilometers larger than the polar one).

From Jupiter, which is the fifth planet from the Sun, Mars is located at a distance of 486 to 612 million km. The Earth is much closer: the smallest distance between the planets is 56 million km, the greatest distance is about 400 million km.
It is not surprising that Mars is very clearly distinguishable in the earthly firmament. Only Jupiter and Venus are brighter than it, and even then not always: once every fifteen to seventeen years, when the red planet approaches the Earth at a minimum distance, during the crescent, Mars is the brightest object in the sky.

Named the fourth planet in order Solar system in honor of the god of war ancient rome, therefore, the graphic symbol of Mars is a circle with an arrow that is directed to the right and up (the circle symbolizes vitality, the arrow is a shield and a spear).

Terrestrial planets

Mars, along with three more planets that are closest to the Sun, namely Mercury, Earth and Venus, is part of the terrestrial planets.

All four planets of this group are characterized by high density. Unlike gaseous planets (Jupiter, Uranus), they are composed of iron, silicon, oxygen, aluminum, magnesium and other heavy elements (for example, iron oxide gives a red tint to the surface of Mars). At the same time, the mass of the terrestrial planets is much inferior to the gas ones: the largest planet of the terrestrial group, Earth, is fourteen times lighter than the lightest gas planet in our system - Uranus.

Like the rest of the terrestrial planets, Earth, Venus, Mercury, Mars is characterized by the following structure:

• Inside the planet there is a partially liquid iron core with a radius of 1480 to 1800 km, with an insignificant admixture of sulfur;
• Silicate mantle;
• The crust, consisting of various rocks, mainly basalt (the average thickness of the Martian crust is 50 km, the maximum is 125).

It is worth noting that the third and fourth planets of the terrestrial group from the Sun have natural satellites... The Earth has one - the Moon, but Mars has two - Phobos and Deimos, which were named after the sons of the god Mars, but in the Greek interpretation, who always accompanied him in battle.

According to one of the hypotheses, the satellites are asteroids trapped in the gravitational field of Mars, therefore the satellites are small in size and have an irregular shape. At the same time, Phobos gradually slows down its movement, as a result of which in the future it will either disintegrate or fall to Mars, but the second satellite, Deimos, on the contrary, is gradually moving away from the red planet.

Another interesting fact about Phobos is that, unlike Deimos and other satellites of the planets of the solar system, it rises from the west side and goes beyond the horizon in the east.

Relief

In the old days, there was movement on Mars lithospheric plates, which caused the rise and fall of the Martian crust (tectonic plates are moving now, but not so actively). The relief is notable for the fact that despite the fact that Mars is one of the smallest planets, many of the largest objects in the solar system are located here:

Here is the most high mountain of those discovered on the planets of the solar system - the inactive volcano Olympus: its height from the base is 21.2 km. If you look at the map, you can see that the mountain is surrounded great amount small hills and ridges.

The largest system of canyons, known as the Mariner Valley, is located on the red planet: on the map of Mars, their length is about 4.5 thousand km, width - 200 km, depth - 11 km.

In the northern hemisphere of the planet is the largest impact crater: its diameter is about 10.5 thousand km, width - 8.5 thousand km.

Interesting fact: the surface of the southern and northern hemispheres is very different. On the southern side, the relief of the planet is slightly elevated and heavily strewn with craters.

The surface of the northern hemisphere, on the other hand, is below average. There are practically no craters on it, and therefore it is smooth plains that were formed by spreading lava and erosion processes. Also in the northern hemisphere are the volcanic uplands, Elysium and Tarsis. The length of Tarsis on the map is about two thousand kilometers, and the average height of the mountain system is about ten kilometers (the Olympus volcano is also located here).

The difference in relief between the hemispheres is not a smooth transition, but represents a wide border along the entire circumference of the planet, which is located not along the equator, but thirty degrees from it, forming a slope in the northern direction (along this border there are the most eroded areas). V currently scientists explain this phenomenon for two reasons:

1. At the early stage of the planet's formation, tectonic plates, being next to each other, converged in one hemisphere and froze;
2. The boundary appeared after a planet collided with a space object the size of Pluto.

Poles of the red planet

If you look closely at the map of the planet of the god Mars, you can see that at both poles there are glaciers with an area of ​​several thousand kilometers, consisting of water ice and frozen carbon dioxide, and their thickness ranges from one meter to four kilometers.

An interesting fact is that at the South Pole, the devices found active geysers: in the spring, when the air temperature rises, fountains of carbon dioxide soar above the surface, raising sand and dust

Depending on the season, the polar caps change their shape every year: in spring dry ice, bypassing the liquid phase, turns into vapor, and the exposed surface begins to darken. In winter, the ice caps increase. At the same time, part of the territory, the area of ​​which on the map is about a thousand kilometers, is constantly covered with ice.

Water

Until the middle of the last century, scientists believed that water could be found on Mars in a liquid state, and this gave reason to say that life on the red planet exists. This theory was based on the fact that light and dark areas were clearly visible on the planet, which very much resembled seas and continents, and dark long lines on the map of the planet resembled river valleys.

But, after the very first flight to Mars, it became obvious that water, due to too low atmospheric pressure, cannot be in a liquid state on seventy percent of the planet. It is suggested that it did exist: this fact is evidenced by the found microscopic particles of the mineral hematite and other minerals, which are usually formed only in sedimentary rocks and clearly succumbed to the action of water.

Also, many scientists are convinced that dark stripes on mountain heights are traces of the presence of liquid salt water at the present time: water streams appear at the end of summer and disappear at the beginning of winter.

The fact that this is water is evidenced by the fact that the stripes do not go over the obstacle, but rather flow around them, sometimes diverge and then merge again (they are very clearly visible on the map of the planet). Some features of the relief indicate that the river beds, during the gradual rise of the surface, shifted and continued to flow in a direction convenient for them.

Another interesting fact indicating the presence of water in the atmosphere is thick clouds, the appearance of which is associated with the fact that the uneven relief of the planet directs the air masses upward, where they cool, and the water vapor in them condenses into ice crystals.

Clouds appear over the canyons of the Mariner at an altitude of about 50 km, when Mars is at the point of perihelion. Air currents moving from the east stretch the clouds for several hundred kilometers, at the same time their width is several tens.

Dark and light areas

Despite the absence of seas and oceans, the names assigned to the light and dark areas remained. If you look at the map, you will notice that the seas are mostly located in the southern hemisphere, they are well visible and well studied.

But what are the darkened areas on the map of Mars - this mystery has not yet been solved. Before the advent of spacecraft, it was believed that the dark areas were covered with vegetation. Now it has become obvious that in places where there are dark stripes and spots, the surface consists of hills, mountains, craters, with collisions of which air masses blow out dust. Therefore, the change in the size and shape of the spots is associated with the movement of dust, which has light or dark light.

Priming

Another evidence that in earlier times life on Mars existed, according to many scientists, is the planet's soil, most of which consists of silica (25%), which, due to the iron content in it, gives the soil a reddish tint. The planet's soil contains a lot of calcium, magnesium, sulfur, sodium, aluminum. The acidity ratio of the soil and some of its other characteristics are so close to the terrestrial ones that plants could easily take root on them, therefore, theoretically, life in such a soil may well exist.

The presence of water ice was found in the soil (these facts were subsequently confirmed more than once). The mystery was finally solved in 2008, when one of the probes, staying at the North Pole, was able to extract water from the soil. Five years later, information was released that the amount of water in the surface layers of the soil of Mars is about 2%.

Climate

The red planet rotates on its axis at an angle of 25.29 degrees. Thanks to this, the solar day here is 24 hours 39 minutes. 35 seconds, while the year on the planet of the god Mars due to the elongation of the orbit lasts 686.9 days.
The fourth-order planet in the solar system has seasons. True, summer weather in the northern hemisphere is cold: summer begins when the planet is as far away from the star as possible. But in the south it is hot and short: at this time Mars is getting as close as possible to the star.

Mars is characterized by cold weather. The average temperature of the planet is -50 ° C: in winter the temperature at the pole is -153 ° C, while at the equator in summer it is slightly more than +22 ° C.

An important role in the temperature distribution on Mars is played by numerous dust storms that begin after the ice melts. At this time, atmospheric pressure rises rapidly, as a result of which large masses of gas begin to move towards the neighboring hemisphere at a speed of 10 to 100 m / s. At the same time, a huge amount of dust rises from the surface, which completely hides the relief (even the Olympus volcano is not visible).

Atmosphere

The thickness of the planet's atmospheric layer is 110 km, and almost 96% of it consists of carbon dioxide (oxygen is only 0.13%, nitrogen is slightly more: 2.7%) and is very rarefied: the pressure of the atmosphere of the red planet is 160 times less than near the Earth, while due to the large difference in altitude, it fluctuates strongly.

It is interesting that in winter about 20-30% of the entire atmosphere of the planet is concentrated and freezes to the poles, and during the melting of ice it returns to the atmosphere, bypassing the liquid state.

The surface of Mars is very poorly protected from invading celestial objects and waves from outside. According to one of the hypotheses, after a collision with a large object at an early stage of its existence, the impact was of such force that the rotation of the core stopped, and the planet lost most of the atmosphere and magnetic field, which were a shield, protecting it from the invasion of celestial bodies and the solar wind, which carries with it radiation.

Therefore, when the Sun appears or recedes behind the horizon, the sky of Mars is reddish-pink, and a transition from blue to violet is noticeable near the solar disk. During the day, the sky turns yellow-orange, which is given by the reddish dust of the planet flying in the rarefied atmosphere.

At night, the brightest object in the sky of Mars is Venus, behind it is Jupiter with satellites, in third place is the Earth (since our planet is located closer to the Sun, for Mars it is internal, therefore it is visible only in the morning or in the evening).

Is there life on Mars

The question of the existence of life on the red planet became especially popular after the publication of the Wales novel "The War of the Worlds", according to the plot of which our planet was captured by humanoids, and earthlings only miraculously managed to survive. Since then, the secrets of the planet located between the Earth and Jupiter have been intriguing for more than one generation, and more and more people are interested in the description of Mars and its satellites.

If you look at the map of the solar system, it becomes obvious that Mars is at a short distance from us, therefore, if life could arise on Earth, then it could well appear on Mars.

The intrigue is also heated by scientists who report the presence of water on the planet of the terrestrial group, as well as conditions suitable for the development of life in the composition of the soil. In addition, pictures are often published on the Internet and specialized magazines in which stones, shadows and other objects depicted on them are compared with buildings, monuments and even the remains of well-preserved representatives of the local flora and fauna, trying to prove the existence of life on this planet and unravel all the secrets Mars.

In the starry sky, Mars is considered one of the brightest objects - the fourth planet in the solar system. Because of the red color emitted by the celestial body, the ancient Romans gave the planetary disk a name that is consonant with the name of the god of war.

Which planet in the solar system is called red?

Among the twinkling stars in the night sky, the planets of the solar system are clearly distinguishable due to their brightness. The glow of the planets is due to the composition of the atmosphere, remoteness and surface feature to reflect the light of the sun in a certain color spectrum. Saturn, Mercury glows light yellow. Venus is silvery matte. Jupiter is the second brightest object in the night sky and shines white. Mars looks reddish.
Red Mars stands out among the white, blue space objects with its crimson color. Let's try to figure out where the reddish color came from!

Why is Mars red?

Why exactly Mars is called the red planet The whole point is that the color of the surface is comparable to the color of rust. Many stones and meteorites on the planet contain iron, and when oxidized, they take on a reddish tint in much the same way as metal on earth rusts.
This becomes apparent when examining the data obtained by the rovers. During the research, it turned out that the surface of the planet next to us is indeed predominantly red in color. The oxidation product of iron, maghemite, which resembles rust, acts as a substance that gives the soil and atmosphere a red tint.

Conclusion: Mars is red because iron oxide is abundant in the planet's soil.

The substance gives the soil a special crimson hue, which is why the question of which planet in the solar system is red does not arise: only Mars falls under this description.

Soil of Mars

Riddles and secrets are associated with the soil of the red planet, some of which mankind has not solved until now.
The latest study shows that almost the entire surface is covered with an oxide film, which is similar in composition to earth rust. It is formed not only by the oxidation products of iron, but also magnesium and calcium sulfates, as well as ferrous clays and sulfur. Similar soils are found on the earth's surface.

Maghemite and hematite on the planet

The soil of the red planet is composed primarily of iron oxide. The magnetic properties of the planet's soil is explained by the presence in it of the magnetic mineral magnetite. The product of magnetite oxidation is maghemite - a magnetic modification of iron oxide, which makes up 5-8 percent in the soil of the red planet.
Maghemite is not resistant to heating, and when heated to high temperatures, it loses its magnetic properties and turns into hematite.
In the course of research, near the Martian mountain Aeolis, a trivalent iron oxide with a crystal lattice was discovered - hematite, better known as red iron ore. And the Meridian plateau is strewn with hematite in the form of iron balls. Such a discovery could help scientists find out hitherto unknown facts from the history of the red planet.

The surface of the Meridiani plate is covered with spherical hematite

Theories of the appearance of iron dioxide

Mars received the title of the red planet due to the high content of iron dioxide and oxide in the soil. It is formed by the interaction of iron and oxygen. The large amount of this substance in the soil suggests that in the past, the atmosphere contained oxygen in large quantities... However, the substances were found not only on the rocky surface. Much iron oxide dust is also found in the planet's atmosphere. There are only two theories why the surface of Mars is so unique and where a huge amount of oxidized iron came from on the planet.

The first theory

The presence of dioxide by some scientists is explained by the possible presence of water in the atmosphere and on the surface of the planet in the early stages of development. The abundance of liquid in a sufficiently warm climate contributed to the oxidation of rocks. The smallest dust particles could evaporate and then fall back to the surface along with precipitation.

Second theory

What color is real Mars

The myth that this space object is uniformly colored red has long been dispelled. When the Martian wind kicks rusty dust into the atmosphere, the sky turns pink and the planet looks reddish from the outside. After examining the images obtained from a rover or satellite, it becomes clear what color the surface of Mars really is. The predominant shade of the soil is indeed red. However, the color of the planet's surface, taking into account local minerals, sometimes takes on a light brown, burgundy or bluish appearance. In reality, there are so many different colors on the planet. To explain such a riot of colors is quite simple. Iron oxides can actually come in a variety of colors. And the presence of white areas indicates that there is a glacier in this place. But due to the predominance of a substance that has a bloody hue, from a distance Mars looks uniformly red.

Natural color of the red planet

Mars is not a red planet

The first images obtained from the rovers indicate that not only the ground, but also the sky is red on the planet. However, some skeptics argue that in fact the surface of a cosmic body is painted in the colors familiar to earthlings. NASA hid this fact, and the reason for this is that the surface is surveyed mainly with the use of light and infrared filters. This was necessary to obtain complete information about the objects under study and the composition of the soil. After all, the rover's camera is, first of all, a photographic device and only then a means for familiarizing the inhabitants.

Knowledge of duration will make it possible to travel back and forth in the future. It is then that we will be able to really find out the real color, but for now we can only look at the pictures and make guesses how we will see it when we are on the planet.

Mars colored

The distribution of colors on the planet is not uniform. Even in the first images taken from orbit, it is clear that there are black and white spots on the planet.
In addition, the color depends not only on chemical properties atmosphere and breed, but also on the time of year, day and weather. Therefore, even a snapshot of the same area will differ in color.

The red surface of the fourth planet of the solar system is fraught with many mysteries. Research continues, and perhaps humanity will soon learn new amazing facts about the celestial object.

Mars is the planet of the solar system, discovered by mankind one of the first. To date, of all eight planets, it is Mars that has been studied in most detail. But this does not stop researchers, but on the contrary, arouses more and more interest in the "Red Planet" and its study.

Why is it called that?

The planet got its name from Mars - one of the most revered gods of the ancient Roman pantheon, which, in turn, is a reference to the Greek god Ares, the patron saint of cruel and treacherous war. This name was not chosen by chance - the reddish surface of Mars resembles the color of blood and inevitably makes you remember the ruler of bloody battles.

The names of the two satellites of the planet also carry a deep meaning. The words "Phobos" and "Deimos" translated from Greek mean "Fear" and "Horror", this is the name of the two sons of Ares, who, according to legend, always accompanied their father in battle.

A brief history of the study

For the first time, mankind began to observe Mars not through telescopes. Even the ancient Egyptians noticed the Red Planet as a wandering object, which is confirmed by ancient written sources. The Egyptians were the first to calculate the trajectory of Mars relative to the earth.

Then the astronomers of the Babylonian kingdom took over the baton. Scientists from Babylon were able to more accurately determine the location of the planet and measure the time of its movement. The Greeks were next. They managed to create an accurate geocentric model and, with its help, understand the motion of the planets. Then scientists from Persia and India were able to estimate the size of the Red Planet and its distance from the Earth.

A huge breakthrough was made by European astronomers. Johannes Kepler, taking the model of Nikolai Kapernik as a basis, was able to calculate the elliptical orbit of Mars, and Christian Huygens created the first map of its surface and noticed an ice cap at the planet's north pole.

The advent of telescopes has blossomed into the exploration of Mars. Slipher, Barnard, Vaucouleur and many other astronomers became the greatest explorers of Mars before man entered space.

Human spacewalk made it possible to study the Red Planet more accurately and in detail. In the middle of the 20th century, precise images of the surface were taken using interplanetary stations, and ultra-powerful infrared and ultraviolet telescopes made it possible to measure the composition of the planet's atmosphere and the speed of winds on it.

In the future, more and more accurate studies of Mars followed by the USSR, the USA, and then other states.

The study of Mars continues to this day, and the data obtained only fuel interest in its study.

Mars characteristics

• Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun, adjacent to the Earth on one side, and with Jupiter on the other. In size, it is one of the smallest and surpasses only Mercury.
• The equator of Mars is slightly more than half the length of the equator of the Earth, and its surface area is approximately equal to the land area of ​​the Earth.
• On the planet, there is a change of seasons, but their duration is very different. For example, summers in the northern part are long and cold, while in the southern part they are shorter and warmer.
• The length of the day is quite comparable with the earth's - 24 hours and 39 minutes, that is, a little more.

Surface of the planet

No wonder the second name of Mars is "Red Planet". Indeed, from a distance, its surface looks reddish-reddish. This shade of the planet's surface is given by the red dust that is contained in the atmosphere.

However, near the planet, it changes its color abruptly and looks no longer red, but yellow-brown. Sometimes other shades can be mixed with these colors: golden, reddish, greenish. These hues come from colored minerals that are also found on Mars.

The main part of the planet's surface is made up of "continents" - clearly visible light areas, and a very small part - "seas", dark and poorly visible areas. Most of the "seas" are located in the southern hemisphere of Mars. The nature of the "seas" is still subject to controversy among researchers. But now scientists are most inclined towards the following explanation: dark regions are simply irregularities on the surface of the planet, namely craters, mountains and hills.

The following fact is extremely curious: the surface of the two hemispheres of Mars is very different.

The Northern Hemisphere is largely composed of smooth plains, its surface is below average.

The southern hemisphere is mostly cratered and above average.

Structure and geological data

The study of the magnetic field of Mars and the volcanoes that are located on its surface led scientists to an interesting conclusion: once on Mars, like on Earth, there was a movement of plates of the lithosphere, which, however, is not observed now.

Modern researchers tend to think that the internal structure of Mars consists of the following components:

1. Bark (approximate thickness - 50 kilometers)
2. Silicate mantle
3. Core (approximate radius - 1500 kilometers)
4. The core of the planet is partially liquid and contains twice as many light elements as the core of the Earth.

Everything about the atmosphere

The atmosphere of Mars is very rarefied, and consists mainly of carbon dioxide. In addition, it includes: nitrogen, water vapor, oxygen, argon, carbon monoxide, xenon and many other elements.

The thickness of the atmosphere is approximately 110 kilometers. The atmospheric pressure at the surface of the planet is less than that of the Earth by more than 150 times (6.1 Millibars).

The planet's temperature fluctuates in a very wide range: from -153 to +20 degrees Celsius. The lowest temperatures occur at the Pole in winter, and the highest at the equator at midday. Average temperatures are around -50 degrees Celsius.

Interestingly, a careful analysis of the Martian meteorite ALH 84001 led scientists to believe that a very long time ago (billions of years ago) the atmosphere of Mars was denser and more humid, and the climate was warmer.

Is there life on Mars?

There is still no definite answer to this question. There is now scientific evidence that argues for both theories.

• The presence of sufficient nutrients in the soil of the planet.
• Large amounts of methane on Mars, the source of which is unknown.
• The presence of water vapor in the soil layer.

• Instant evaporation of water from the surface of the planet.
• Vulnerable to Solar Wind Bombardment.
• The water on Mars is too salty and alkaline and uninhabitable.
• Intense ultraviolet radiation.

Thus, scientists cannot give an exact answer, since the amount of required data is too small.

• The mass of Mars is 10 times less than the mass of the Earth.
• The first person to see Mars through a telescope was Galileo Galilei.
• Mars was originally the Roman god of harvest, not war.
• The inhabitants of Babylon called the planet "Nergal" (in honor of their deity of evil).
• In ancient India, Mars was named "Mangala" (Indian god of war).
• In culture, Mars has become the most popular planet in the solar system.
• The daily dose of radiation on Mars is equal to the annual dose on Earth.