The recently created Spanish agency Astroland has presented an ambitious and interesting project in our country. 100 people may be the lucky ones to take the first step to Mars in 2019 from a large cave located in Arredondo (Cantabria) thanks to the Astroland Interplanetary Agency.
Mars is the only place – so far – where we have solid clues for a possible compatibility with life.
It is the fourth planet in order of distance from the sun. Because of its bloody color, the Romans named it in honor of their god of war: Mars. In reality, the Romans copied the ancient Greeks, who also named the planet after their god of war, Ares. Other civilizations also gave names to the planets by their color, for example, the Egyptians called the red planet “Su Desher”, which means “the red one”, while the ancient Chinese astronomers called it “the star of the fire”.
The bright rust color that Mars is known by is due to the iron-rich minerals in its regolith – the loose dust and rock that covers its surface. Earth’s soil is also a type of regolith, albeit loaded with organic content. According to NASA, iron minerals oxidize, which makes the soil look red.
The red planet is home to the highest mountain and the deepest and longest valley in the solar system. Olympus Mons is about 27 kilometers high, about three times higher than Mount Everest, while the Valles Marineris valley system, named after the Mariner 9 probe that discovered it in 1971, reaches a depth of up to 10 km and runs from east to west for about 4,000 km, roughly the width of Australia.
Mars also has the largest volcanoes in the solar system, Olympus Mons being one of them. The huge volcano, which has a diameter of approximately 600 km, is a shield volcano, with gradually rising slopes like those of Hawaiian volcanoes, and was created by eruptions of lava that flowed long distances before solidifying.
Now, all eyes are on this planet. Space agencies and private companies assure that humans will set foot on the red planet in the 2030s. That is why Astroland takes the first step. Let’s find out what it is.
