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The planet has remained under observation by ground and space-based instruments across a broad range of the electromagnetic spectrum.The discovery of meteorites on Earth that originated on Mars has allowed laboratory examination of the chemical conditions on the planet.
The timeline of discovery of Solar System planets and their natural satellites charts the progress of the discovery of new bodies over history. Each object is listed in chronological order of its discovery (multiple dates occur when the moments of imaging, observation, and publication differ), identified through its various designations (including temporary and permanent schemes), and the ...
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun.The surface of Mars is orange-red because it is covered in iron(III) oxide dust, giving it the nickname "the Red Planet". [22] [23] Mars is among the brightest objects in Earth's sky, and its high-contrast albedo features have made it a common subject for telescope viewing.
When Mariner 9 reached Mars in 1971, it and two Soviet orbiters (Mars 2 and Mars 3) found that a planet-wide dust storm was in progress. The mission controllers used the time spent waiting for the storm to clear to have the probe rendezvous with, and photograph, Phobos .
Its orbit revealed that it was a new planet, Uranus, the first ever discovered telescopically. [20] Giuseppe Piazzi discovered Ceres in 1801, a small world between Mars and Jupiter. It was considered another planet, but after subsequent discoveries of other small worlds in the same region, it and the others were eventually reclassified as ...
The presence of silica suggests hot springs or steam vents may have once been on Mars, which could have created conditions favorable for microbial life if it ever existed on the planet. The silica ...
Attempted Mars orbiter/Phobos landers (contact lost) [286] [287] Phobos 2: 12 July 1988 Mars orbiter/attempted Phobos landers (contact lost) [288] [289] Magellan: 4 May 1989 Venus orbiter [290] [291] Galileo: 18 October 1989 Venus flyby, first Asteroid flyby , first Asteroid moon discovery , first Jupiter orbiter, first Jupiter atmospheric probe
The probe also found that Mars has no global magnetic field that would protect the planet from potentially life-threatening cosmic rays. The probe was able to calculate the atmospheric pressure on the planet to be about 0.6 kPa (compared to Earth's 101.3 kPa), meaning that liquid water could not exist on the planet's surface. [ 26 ]