Mars

January 30, 2023

Mars

MARS

- The RED Planet -

From ancient times, men have been interested in the planet Mars. Three thousand years ago, the Babylonians named this planet Nergal after their God of Death. The Romans named the planet Mars after their God of War. Mars is a small, red planet. Its surface area is a quarter of that of the earth. Mars has two small moons called Phobos and Deimos.

In the seventeenth century, Galileo observed the planet Mars through a telescope. He noted that the planet is spherical in shape. Modern man dreams of exploring outer space. One of his ambitions is to reach Mars. In recent years, man has made great efforts to find out more about Mars. One way of doing so is to observe this planet through a telescope. Another way is to send unmanned spacecraft to take photographs of the planet. Yet another way is to send astronauts in spacecraft to explore the planet.

On a journey to Mars, astronauts will have to spend about 220 days in space. So scientists are now trying to solve problems related to long-distance space flights. The crew will need food, water, and oxygen. It will not be possible to take these in large quantities. Scientists are devising other ways of providing spacecraft crews with these necessities. They will also have to decide on the number and types of personnel necessary for long distance space flights.

Various instruments will be taken on the journey to Mars. These instruments will analyze the Martian atmosphere and record its temperatures. Mars is further away from the sun than the earth is. Hence, it receives less heat and is colder than the earth. The Martian atmosphere is very thin. So there are greater differences between the night temperatures and the day temperatures there than on earth.

A number of experiments will be done on the Martian surface to find out facts about its composition. The astronauts will explore the bright and dark areas on Mars and collect specimens of the Martian soil. They will also be able to see the craters on Mars. These are of two types. There are large, flat-bottomed craters and small, bowl-shaped ones. Photographs of these craters will be taken.