Shots of Mars in the snow are very rare, as they are difficult to capture.
But it gives us a glimpse of what a future Mars colony might enjoy — or endure — over the winter break.
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The average temperature on the Red Planet is about -65 °C (-85 °F), and drops to -123 °C (-190 °F) at the poles in winter.
Fortunately, winter only comes once every Martian year, which is equivalent to two years on Earth.
While Martian frost is more common, the planet does see snow.
Snow falls and settles at the north and south poles of Mars, usually at night under extremely cold conditions and under heavy cloud cover.
Although you wouldn't want to venture too close to the planet's poles, otherwise you'll face frigid temperatures and katabatic winds.
Although no area will see more than a few feet of snow, “enough precipitation is enough that you can walk through it on snowshoes,” according to Sylvain Picot, a Mars scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“If you're looking to ski, you'll have to go to a ditch or slope, where snow can accumulate on the sloped surface,” he added.
Mars is home to some amazing landscapes.
Not least is Korolev Crater, which is 50 miles wide and a mile thick at the bottom.
The thick ice cover persists all year round, meaning Korolev could become a favorite destination for snowboarders in the future.
Is it real snow?
There are two types of snow on Mars.
The first is ground-like snow made up of water ice.
The second consists of carbon dioxide, or dry ice.
Mars' air is so thin — more than 100 times thinner than Earth's — that water ice turns into gas before it touches Earth.
Whereas dry ice actually reaches the surface and settles.
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Martian ice is unique in that it is cube-shaped, according to Pico.
Instead of falling in a wave, it descends almost like fog.
“Because carbon dioxide ice has symmetry four, we know that dry ice flakes will be cube-shaped,” Becchio said.
“Thanks to the Mars Climate Probe, we can say that these snowflakes will be smaller than the width of a human hair.”
Researchers calculated that dry ice particles on Mars are roughly the size of a human red blood cell.
While frost on Mars was first discovered in the 1970s by NASA's Viking landers, the US space agency only discovered actual snow in 2003.
Using a special instrument that can detect light invisible to the human eye, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter detected carbon dioxide snow falling to the ground.
Then in 2008, NASA's Phoenix lander touched down 1,000 miles from the North Pole and detected water ice falling on the surface using a laser instrument.
No pictures of snowfall have ever been taken on Mars.
Cameras on orbiting spacecraft can't get deep enough through the clouds to capture nighttime snowfall.
And rovers on the surface simply cannot survive the extreme cold.
However, NASA was able to provide stunning footage of the red planet creating a winter wonderland, but only once the snow settled.
How long does it take to get to Mars?
It is nothing less than a journey…
- There is a huge distance between Earth and Mars, which means that any trip to the red planet would take a very long time
- This is further complicated by the fact that the distance is constantly changing as the two planets orbit the Sun
- The closest Earth and Mars can be is 33.9 million miles, or 9,800 times the distance between London and New York.
- But this is really rare: the most useful distance is the average, which is 140 million miles
- Scientists on Earth have already launched a whole host of spacecraft to Mars (or near it), so we have a rough idea of how long current technology will take.
- Historically, the journey took between 128 and 333 days, which is a very long time for humans to spend in a cramped spacecraft.
