Geoloy Of Mars Essay, Research Paper

Mars is the fourth furthest away from the sun and is recognized by its reddish color. Mars is also very much like the Earth. ” More than any other planet in the solar system, Mars has characteristics that make it an Earth-like world “(Grolier, 1992). One thing that is very similar to Earth is the rotation period. Mars rotation period is only thirty seven minutes longer than the Earth’s. This would explain why Mars has significant seasonal changes just as Earth does. It is believed that the Planets 5 difference between winter and summer on Mars is even greater than on Earth. Mars is extremely hard to understand due to the effect of blurring that is caused by the two atmospheres of Mars. Scientists do know, however, that Mars is relatively small and that changes take place in the surface features when the seasons change. It is also known that dust storms are prevalent and leaves the surface of Mars covered by a red haze. Mars has a very thin atmosphere which is composed of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, argon, water vapor and oxygen. Mars also has no magnetic field. ” Because the atmosphere of mars is so thin, wind velocities up to several hundred Km per hour are required to raise the dust particles during a dust storm, and these fast- moving particles erode structures with a sand-blasting effect ” (Grolier, 1992). Therefore, the surface is basically plain-like and covered with large craters. There are also some areas where the rock is ” jumbled.” The poles of Mars are iced over and the temperature is about 160 – 170 degrees K. Mars also has its share of volcanoes. Most of these volcanoes are shield volcanoes. The surface is littered with winding channels that resemble river channels that have dried up over time. Scientists believe that water once existed and caused the formation of these channels. It is said that, ” Mars remains the best candidate for life in the solar system outside of the Earth,” and that is what makes Mars so interesting to scientists.