Mars

**Mars** Mars is a planet. It is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is the next planet beyond Earth. Mars is more than 142 million miles from the Sun. The planet is about half the size of Earth. A day on Mars is 24.6 hours. A year on Mars is 687 Earth days. Mars is known as the Red Planet. It is red because the soil looks like rusty iron. Mars has two small moons. Their names are Phobos (FOE-bohs) and Deimos (DEE-mohs). Mars is very cold. The average temperature on Mars is minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit -- way below freezing! Mars is rocky with canyons, volcanoes and craters all over it. Red dust covers almost all of Mars. It has clouds and wind, just as Earth does. Sometimes the wind blows the red dust into a dust storm. Tiny dust storms can look like tornados, and large ones can cover the whole planet! Mars has about one-third the gravity of Earth. Full model for gameready : [Youtube](https://youtu.be/-caSAxFc48k)