2. Mars is an Inner planet It is the fourth planet from the sun. Mars does not have any rings. This planet is red because of its iron dust it contains. Its diameter is 4194 miles This planet is 128 miles away from the sun Gravity is.37 times Earth’s gravity. Revolution time is 687 earth days.

3. Mars has always been questioned to have life. Many people thought this because this plant has a thin layer of air that surrounds the planet, this causes the planet to have weather, including clouds and dust storms. The surface of this planet is polar water and carbon dioxide ice caps. People thought that the ice was from water and wherever water is there is life. Scientist soon discovered that the ice caps were made up of carbon dioxide.

4. Mars's Orbit

5. Phobos Deimos Diameter: 17 miles Diameter: 10 miles Distance from Planet: 5,830Distance from Planet: 14,580

6. The atmosphere of Mars is much thinner than that of Earth. Its surface pressure averaging 1/100th of Earth’s. Surface temperatures range from -113oC at the winter pole to 0oC on the dayside during summer. The atmosphere is composed mainly of carbon dioxide (95.3%), nitrogen (2.7%), and argon (1.6%), with small amounts of other gases. Oxygen, which is so important to us on earth, makes up only 0.13% of the atmosphere at Mars. There is only one-fourth as much water vapor in the atmosphere.

7. Mayans were sophisticated observers of the sky. Mayans used their astronomical knowledge to predict future human events. They were aware of the movements of Mars. In one of the ancient Mayan books, Mars is represented by a series of pictures of a long-nosed beast shown descending to varying depths from a sky band. In Hindu mythology, the planet Mars is known as Mangala. The planet of Mars is identified with the war god Karttikeya. Karttikeya was born from six sparks that fell from the eyes of the god Siva into a lake near Madras. From the sparks, six children were created who were nursed by the Pleiades.

8. The first spacecraft to visit Mars was Mariner 4 in 1965. Several others followed including the two Viking landers in 1976. After a long break, Mars Pathfinder landed successfully on Mars on July 4, 1997.

9. Google Images www.maxysoft.com http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/mars/mars_orbit.html