The distance from Earth to Mars changes on a minute to minute basis. The two travel along elliptical orbits that are not synchronized, so they are constantly alternating between getting closer together and farther apart.
Theoretically, Mars and Earth are closest together when Earth is at farthest point from the Sun(aphelion) and Mars is at its closest to the Sun(perihelion). At that point the two would be within 54.6 million km of each other. That point is said to be theoretical because it has not been observed during recorded history. The closest known approach was in 2003, when Earth and Mars were separated by only 56 million km. On the opposite end of the scale, Mars and Earth can be 401 million km apart when they are in opposition and both are at aphelion. The average distance between the two is 225 million km.
Chat with our AI personalities
No, Earth and Mars are closest when they are in opposition, which occurs about every 26 months. They are farthest apart when they are on opposite sides of the Sun, which happens approximately every 780 days.
The farthest away from Earth among the options given is the night stars, followed by the planet Mars, the Moon, and finally the Sun, which is the closest to Earth.
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in our solar system, located between Earth and Jupiter. Its distance from Earth varies due to the elliptical nature of its orbit, with a closest approach of about 33.9 million miles and a farthest distance of about 250 million miles.
From the farthest to the closest to the sun, the order of the planets is: Neptune, Uranus, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury.
The weight of a space probe on the surface of Mars would be less than on Earth due to Mars having lower gravity. Mars has about 38% of Earth's gravity, so a space probe that weighs 1000 lbs on Earth would only weigh about 380 lbs on the surface of Mars.
No human has physically traveled to Mars yet. NASA and other space agencies are planning missions to send humans to Mars in the future, likely within the next few decades. However, various rovers and orbiters have been sent to Mars to study its atmosphere, surface, and geology.