Mars

Table of Contents

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images, Videos & Interactives

seasons of Mars

The interactive title page shows the planet Mars.

Mars: last day of spring

Mars polar water-ice cap

dust devil on Mars

ground frost on Mars

For Students

Mars

Read Next

Mars rover. Mars Pathfinder. NASA. Sojourner.

10 Important Dates in Mars History

Solar system illustration. (Sun; planets)

A Model of the Cosmos

Remarkable new details of Pluto's largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles

Why Is Pluto No Longer a Planet?

Galaxy clusters like Abell 2744 can act as a natural cosmic lens, magnifying light from more distant, background objects through gravity. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope may be able to detect light from the first stars in the universe if they are gravitationally lensed by such clusters. (astronomy, space exploration, galaxies)

How Fast Is the Universe Expanding?

Polar bear leaping among ice floes at Spitsbergen, Svalbard archipelago, Norway, the Arctic. Sea ice climate change mammal jump global warming

All 81 References in Fall Out Boy’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” Explained

Discover

Periodical Cicada, Adult, Magicicada spp. Requires 17 years to complete development. Nymph splits its skin, and transforms into an adult. Feeds on sap of tree roots. Northern Illinois Brood. This brood is the largest emergence of cicadas anywhere

Why Do Some Cicadas Appear Only Every 17 Years?

Dancers at a Cinco de Mayo festival at the Mission District, San Francisco, California. (Photo dated 2019.) holidays

Is Cinco de Mayo Mexico's Independence Day?

Shadow of a man holding large knife in his hand inside of some dark, spooky buiding

7 of History's Most Notorious Serial Killers

Amendments 1-10 to the Constitution of the United States constitute what is known as the Bill of Rights on an American flag.

What Is the Emoluments Clause?

Aspirin pills.

7 Drugs that Changed the World

Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society

12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”

Happy, smiling, flying pig

7 Everyday English Idioms and Where They Come From

Mars: Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Perseverance rover rolls into 'Crocodile' region on Mars to hunt for super-old rocks • May 20, 2025, 11:39 PM ET (Space)

New study suggests scientists were wrong about dark streaks on Mars • May 20, 2025, 5:58 AM ET (CBS)

NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover to Take Bite Out of ‘Krokodillen’ • May 19, 2025, 10:17 AM ET (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) (.gov))

NASA rover spies the first aurora at Mars that's visible to the human eye • May 14, 2025, 2:03 PM ET (AP)

The home of Elon Musk's SpaceX could become an official Texas city called Starbase • Apr. 30, 2025, 4:26 PM ET (AP)

Photos and Videos

seasons of Mars

Mars: last day of spring

Mars polar water-ice cap

dust devil on Mars

ground frost on Mars

south polar region of Mars

sand dunes on Mars

topographic map of Mars

simulated flight over Mars's surfaceA Simulated

Mars's moons explained

Mars exploration: Opportunity and Curiosity rovers

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Topics

Earth Venus Jupiter Mercury Saturn Neptune Uranus

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

valley: Channels and valleys on Mars

Quiz

Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.

All About Astronomy

This artist's concept illustrates Kepler-16b, the first planet known to definitively orbit two stars -- what's called a circumbinary planet. The planet, which can be seen in the foreground, was discovered by NASA's Kepler mission. The two orbiting stars r

Extrasolar Planets

M101 (NGC 5457, The Pinwheel Galaxy). Hubble Space Telescope image of face-on spiral galaxy Messier 101 (M101). Largest most detailed photo of a spiral galaxy that has ever been released from Hubble. Created from 1994-2003

Everything in Space in a 25-Minute Quiz

Buzz Aldrin. Apollo 11. Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin Aldrin, photographed July 20, 1969, during the first manned mission to the Moon's surface. Reflected in Aldrin's faceplate is the Lunar Module and astronaut Neil Armstrong, who took the picture.

Can You Match The Moon To Its Planet? Quiz

27 True-or-False Questions from Britannica’s Most Difficult Science Quizzes

1 July 2002: The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite reveals a massive solar eruption more than 30 times the Earth's diameter. The eruption formed when a loop of a magnetic field over the surface of the Sun trapped hot gas.

Brightest Star in the Solar System

The orbits of the planets and other elements of the solar system, including asteroids, Kuiper belt, Oort cloud, comet

Space Odyssey

Buzz Aldrin. Apollo 11. Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin Aldrin, photographed July 20, 1969, during the first manned mission to the Moon's surface. Reflected in Aldrin's faceplate is the Lunar Module and astronaut Neil Armstrong, who took the picture.

Can You Match The Moon To Its Planet? Quiz

View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).

Astronomy and Space Quiz

View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).

Astronomy and Space Quiz

Saturn. Saturn and its rings. Second largest planet of the solar system. Space Art

Planets and the Earth’s Moon

List

Mars rover. Mars Pathfinder. NASA. Sojourner.

10 Important Dates in Mars History

Demystified

Remarkable new details of Pluto's largest moon Charon are revealed in this image from New Horizons' Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), taken late on July 13, 2015 from a distance of 289,000 miles

Why Is Pluto No Longer a Planet?