Mars is a rocky planet that moves around (orbits) our Sun in the same way as Earth. It is the planet next to Earth as you move outwards away from the Sun
Do you know the names of each of the planets? Drag the labels in the list below to the correct planet's box!
Earth and Mars are just two of several planets which form part of our solar system (the planets and other structures which orbit the Sun). All the planets are very different, for example they have different sizes, are made of different materials, and have different orbital paths. We know a lot about Earth, but we only have some knowledge about the other planets. In the research exercise below you find out more about them, especially Mars!
Look at the data in the table, and then answer the questions which follow
| Mercury | Venus | Earth | Mars | Jupiter | Saturn | Uranus | Neptune | Pluto | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mass (1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 kg) | 0.330 | 4.87 | 5.97 | 0.642 | 1898 | 568 | 86.8 | 102 | 0.0146 |
| Diameter (km) | 4879 | 12,104 | 12,756 | 6792 | 142,984 | 120,536 | 51,118 | 49,528 | 2370 |
| Density (kg/m3) | 5427 | 5243 | 5514 | 3933 | 1326 | 687 | 1271 | 1638 | 2095 |
| Gravity (m/s2) | 3.7 | 8.9 | 9.8 | 3.7 | 23.1 | 9.0 | 8.7 | 11.0 | 0.7 |
| Length of Day (hours) | 4222.6 | 2802.0 | 24.0 | 24.7 | 9.9 | 10.7 | 17.2 | 16.1 | 153.3 |
| Distance from Sun (1 000 000 km) | 57.9 | 108.2 | 149.6 | 227.9 | 778.6 | 1433.5 | 2872.5 | 4495.1 | 5906.4 |
| Orbital Period (days) | 88.0 | 224.7 | 365.2 | 687.0 | 4,331 | 10,747 | 30,589 | 59,800 | 90,560 |
| Mean Temperature (C) | 167 | 464 | 15 | -65 | -110 | -140 | -195 | -200 | -225 |
| Number of Moons | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 67 | 62 | 27 | 14 | 5 |