Mars Facts

• Have students do research to see how Mars compares with Earth.
• Students can practice conversions to and from metric units.

 

Mean Distance from Sun:                 227.9 million kilometers
 
Inclination of Orbit to Ecliptic:       1.9 degrees
 
Eccentricity of Orbit:                  0.093
 
Period of Revolution (Year):            687 days
 
Rotation Period (Day):                  24 hours, 37 minutes
 
Inclination of Axis:                    25 degrees 12 minutes
 
Equatorial Diameter:                    6,794 kilometers
 
Planet Volume:                          1.63 x 1022 cubic meters (m^3)
 
Planet Mean Density:                    3.93 grams per cubic centimeter (g cm^-3)
 
Mean Surface Gravity:                   3.72 meters per second
 
Gravity as Compared to Earth:           0.38 (where Earth gravity = 1)


Atmosphere (Main Components):

					Carbon Dioxide:     95.3%
					Nitrogen:            2.7%
					Argon:               1.6%
					Oxygen:              0.1%

 
Average Atmospheric Pressure:           6.5 millibars (Earth is approx 1 bar)
 
Two Moons:                              Phobos (13.3 by 11.1 by 9.3 km elliptical moon)

                                        Deimos (7.6 by 6.2 by 5.4 km elliptical moon)
 

 
Conversion Factors:

Celsius = Kelvin minus 273.15 = (5 divided by 9) times (Fahrenheit minus 32)

Meter to Foot = 3.2808

Meter to Mile = 0.0006214

Meters per Second to Miles per Hour = 2.237

Cubic Kilometer to Cubic Mile = 0.2399

Grams per Cubic Centimeter = Pounds per Cubic Foot = 62.43

Bar to Millibar = 1000; Bar to Atmosphere = 0.987; 
	Bar to Pound per Square Foot = 2088.54

Sources:

• Hugh H. Kieffer, Bruce M. Jakosky, and Conway W. Snyder, "The Planet Mars: From Antiquity to the Present," in H.H. Kieffer et al., Mars, pp. 1 - 33, University of Arizona Press, Tucson, 1992.

• "Charting the Planets," NASA Educational Brief EB-112, May 1993.