LIVING ON MARS

A Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live on the planet Mars? Throughout history, people have always been curious about space and other planets. Many space shuttles have been sent to the moon and other planets to explore, but living in space has always been the dream of humankind.

B Among other planets, Mars has attracted the attention of NASA and the astronauts working for it. The idea of living on Mars, or in other words the Red Planet –because of its orange-red appearance in the sky – first came out in the 19th century. In 1965, NASA’s Mariner 4 spacecraft completed the first Martian flyby, and six years later, the Soviet Union’s Mars 3 lander became the first spacecraft to land softly on Mars. Since then, there have been many successful missions to the Red Planet.

C Like Earth, Mars has seasons but the winters are colder and summers hotter. The average temperature on Mars is minus 64 degrees Celsius. On Earth however, the average temperature of the planet is 16.8 degrees Celsius. The temperatures on Mars can also change dramatically within a single week.

D If you want to live on Mars,you need to draw up a new kind of clock or calendar. A day on Mars is a bit longer than Earth days. One Martian day is about 24.63 hours, while an Earth day clocks in at 23.94 hours. The Martian year is also longer than that of the Earth because it takes Mars longer to orbit the sun. One year on Mars lasts 687 days, compared to Earth’s 365 days.

E Besides, 95% of the air on Mars is carbon dioxide. The atmosphere is thinner. That’s why, the radiation is higher and the planet is famous for its dust storms. Lastly, the gravity is lighter and this makes it harder for people to move from one place to another. Considering all these differences, living on Mars seems impossible, but scientists still try to find new ways and humankind will never stop exploring the space until they find a new planet to live