ASTR 230 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Red Planet Mars, Valles Marineris, Terrestrial Planet
31 Jul 2017
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Document Summary
Mars is the 4th planet from the sun after earth and before jupiter. It is the second smallest planet after mercury. It was named after mars, the god of war. Planet due to the presence of iron oxide on the surface which gives it a reddish appearance. Mars is a terrestrial planet with an iron core, ice caps, mountains and deserts similar to earth. It has no atmosphere and had vast craters on the surface due to asteroid collisions like mercury. Mars has a rotational period and season cycle similar to that of earth and like earth, the tilt of the planet causes the seasons. Mars is home to olympus mons, the largest volcanic mountain and second highest point in the solar system. It also has the valles marineris, one of the largest canyon systems in the solar system. A large basin in the northern hemisphere covering 40% of. Mars" surface area may be the result of a meteorite collision.
