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Mars comes closer to Earth more than any other planet save Venus at its nearest—56 million km is the closest distance between Mars and Earth, whereas the closest Venus comes to Earth is 40 million km. Mars comes closest to Earth every other year, around the time of its opposition, when Earth is sweeping between the Sun and Mars. Extra-close ...
Orbital elements are the parameters required to uniquely identify a specific orbit. In celestial mechanics these elements are considered in two-body systems using a Kepler orbit . There are many different ways to mathematically describe the same orbit, but certain schemes are commonly used in astronomy and orbital mechanics .
Transfer orbit, an orbit used during an orbital maneuver from one orbit to another. Lunar transfer orbit (LTO) [clarification needed] accomplished with trans-lunar injection (TLI) Mars transfer orbit (MTO) also known as trans-Mars injection (TMI) orbit; Repeat orbit: An orbit where the ground track of the satellite repeats after a period of time.
Every object in a 2-body ballistic trajectory has a constant specific orbital energy equal to the sum of its specific kinetic and specific potential energy: = = =, where = is the standard gravitational parameter of the massive body with mass , and is the radial distance from its center. As an object in an escape trajectory moves outward, its ...
In the summer of 2008, the TEGA and WCL experiments on the 2007 Phoenix Mars lander found between 3–5wt% (percent by weight) calcite (CaCO 3) and an alkaline soil. [65] In 2010, analyses by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit identified outcrops rich in magnesium-iron carbonate (16–34 wt%) in the Columbia Hills of Gusev crater. The magnesium ...
Generalised geological map of Mars [1] Mars as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. The geology of Mars is the scientific study of the surface, crust, and interior of the planet Mars. It emphasizes the composition, structure, history, and physical processes that shape the planet. It is analogous to the field of terrestrial geology.
Orbital inclination is the angle between a planet's orbital plane and another plane of reference. For exoplanets, the inclination is usually stated with respect to an observer on Earth: the angle used is that between the normal to the planet's orbital plane and the line of sight from Earth to the star.
The mineralogy of Mars is the chemical composition of rocks and soil that encompass the surface of Mars. Various orbital crafts have used spectroscopic methods to identify the signature of some minerals .