Ruth Patrick Science Education Center Observatory
Our Solar System Series - Mars
12/12/12 Publish Date
The Mars cache is part of the solar system cache series centered at University of South Carolina Aiken. In this solar system model, the 5-meter (16.4-feet) dome of the Ruth Patrick Science Education Center (RPSEC) Observatory represents the diameter of the Sun known as Sol. Be sure to compare the size of the planet image in the cache to the size of and distance to the observatory dome on top of the RPSEC, which is at the top of the hill. The sizes and distance are to scale.
Note the suggested parking coordinates near the corner of 118 and Gregg Highway. From this location, the walk to the cache is about 1/4 mile. The access road to the USCA dorms might look closer, but there is no place to park right there. You may park along 118 close to the cache. However, there is a steep hill up to the cache and the road can be busy.
Mars is the planet forth closest to the Sun. It has been known since antiquity and named by the Greeks as one of the five asteres planetai or "wandering stars." Today, we know that it is one of the five planets orbiting the Sun that are visible to people on Earth with unaided vision. These wanderers or planets are Mercury, Mars, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
Mars Facts:
- One of the Terrestrial Planets that include Mercury, Mars, Earth, Mars
- Mars is red because it is rusty.
- Phobos (fear) and Deimos (panic) are the moons of Mars. They were named after the horses that pulled the chariot of the Greek war god Ares
- Distance from Sun: Average = 142 million mi.
- Diameter = 4,212 mi. (6,779 km.)
- Length of year = 687 Earth days
- Length of day = The Martian “day” is about half a hour longer than Earth..
- Temperature: -133 C (-207 F) at the winter pole. 27 C (80 F) on the day side during summer.
| Mars Distances with Sun Diameter = 5 m. |
| Diam cm |
Diam in |
Orbit km |
Orbit mi |
Orbit m |
Orbit ft |
2.44
|
0.96 |
0.819
|
0.51 |
819 |
2,688 |
Be sure to obtain the code from the cache container in order to find the final Sun cache location.
All First Day Finders (FDF) received a prize of two complementary planetarium tickets and a FDF Award Card. Visit http://rpsec.usca.edu/planetarium/ for schedule information.
Congratulations to The L Family who sought and was FTF Mars!
RPSEC Solar System Series:
- RPSEC Mercury - http://coord.info/GC3HQQH
- RPSEC Venus - http://coord.info/GC3JGQ4
- RPSEC Earth - http://coord.info/GC3V76Q
- RPSEC Mars - http://coord.info/GC41QMY
- RPSEC Dwarf Planet Ceres - http://coord.info/GC4342F
- RPSEC Jupiter - http://coord.info/GC49K1F
- RPSEC Saturn - http://coord.info/GC532M6
- RPSEC Uranus - http://coord.info/GC5FFXH
- RPSEC Neptune - http://coord.info/GC5QGBB
- RPSEC Dwarf Planet Pluto - http://coord.info/GC63TR7
- RPSEC Dwarf Planet Haumea - http://coord.info/GC6BXJ4
- RPSEC Dwarf Planet Makemake - http://coord.info/GC6F1RZ
- RPSEC Dwarf Planet Eris - http://coord.info/GC6HVTA
- RPSEC Sun - https://coord.info/GC6VW9W - get the cache codes from the first 13 Solar System Series caches to find the Sun.
Solar System in One Day Honor Roll. Find all of the above caches in one day and be included in the honor roll located on the RPSEC Sun page.
- RPSEC Ultima Thule - http://coord.info/GC81EPX
Permission to hide this geocache granted by USC Aiken.