Mars

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in our solar system. It is named after Mars, the god of war in Roman mythology (the counterpart to Ares in Greek mythology), because of its red color as viewed in the night sky. This feature also earned it the name "The Red Planet." Mars has two moons (Phobos and Deimos) which are both small and oddly-shaped, possibly being captured asteroids. The prefix areo- refers to Mars in the same way geo- refers to Earth—e.g. areology versus geology.

Life on Mars

Main article: Life on Mars

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Evidence exists that the planet once was significantly more habitable than today, but the question whether living organisms ever actually existed there is an open one. Some researchers think that a certain rock which is believed to have originated on Mars - specifically, meteorite ALH84001 - does contain evidence of past biologic activity, but no consensus about these claims has been achieved so far and recent research indicates that the rock, since its creation several billion years ago, has never been exposed

Related Topics:
Organism - Rock - ALH84001

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to temperatures for extended periods of time that would allow for liquid water.

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The Viking probes carried experiments designed to detect microorganisms in Martian soil at their respective landing sites, and had some positive results, later denied by many scientists, resulting in ongoing controversy. Also, present biologic activity is one of the explanations that have been suggested for the presence of traces of methane within the Martian atmosphere, but other explanations not involving life are generally considered more likely.

Related Topics:
Viking probes - Ongoing controversy - Methane - Atmosphere

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If colonization is going to happen, Mars seems a likely choice due to its rather hospitable conditions (compared with other planets, it is most like Earth).

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