Mars

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". 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. It is classified as a terrestrial planet and is the second smallest of the Solar System's planets with a diameter of 6,779 km (4,212 mi). In terms of orbital motion, a Martian solar day (sol) is equal to 24.5 hours, and a Martian solar year is equal to 1.88 Earth years. Mars has two natural satellites that are small and irregular in shape: Phobos and Deimos.

Some of the key events about Mars

1965
First successful flyby of Mars by NASA's Mariner 4 spacecraft, capturing the first close-up images of the planet's surface
1965
The Mariner 4 flyby revealed a barren, cratered surface, dashing hopes of finding a habitable world
1971
First spacecraft to orbit Mars, Mariner 9, arrived and began mapping the planet
1971
The Soviet Mars 3 lander failed after transmitting for only 20 seconds on the Martian surface
1976
Viking 1 and 2 landers successfully touched down on Mars, conducting the first experiments to search for life on another planet
1976
The Viking landers found no clear evidence of life on Mars, disappointing many scientists
1993
NASA's Mars Observer spacecraft was lost just before entering Mars orbit
1997
Mars Pathfinder mission landed on Mars, deploying the first rover, Sojourner, to explore the Martian surface
1999
The Mars Climate Orbiter was lost due to a metric-imperial unit conversion error
1999
The Mars Polar Lander crashed on the Martian surface due to a software error
2001
Mars Odyssey orbiter arrived at Mars, discovering vast amounts of underground ice
2003
The Beagle 2 lander failed to communicate after landing on Mars
2004
Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars, greatly expanding our knowledge of Martian geology
2006
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter began its mission, providing the most detailed images of Mars to date
2008
Phoenix lander confirmed the presence of water ice near the Martian north pole
2011
The Russian Phobos-Grunt mission to Mars' moon Phobos failed to leave Earth orbit
2012
Curiosity rover landed on Mars, equipped with the most advanced scientific instruments ever sent to the planet's surface
2016
The ExoMars Schiaparelli lander crashed on Mars due to a software glitch
2018
InSight lander touched down on Mars to study the planet's deep interior, including the first detection of "marsquakes"
2022
The InSight lander's mission ended as its solar panels became covered in dust, reducing power generation

Disclaimer: This material is written based on information taken from open sources, including Wikipedia, news media, podcasts, and other public sources.