7 stunning images of Red Planet captured by NASA

The fourth planet from the sun and the second smallest planet in our solar system, with a diameter of about half that of Earth, Mars is known as Red Planet.

NASA MARCI acquires a global view of the red planet and its weather patterns every day. This image was taken on Nov. 3, 2008. 

The Red Planet is very cold, with average temperatures of minus 85 degrees Fahrenheit. At the equator, temperatures can reach 20°C, but at the poles they can drop to -140°C.

Mars has a very thin atmosphere made up of mostly carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon. Humans would not be able to breathe the air on the Red Planet.

This composite image, from NASA Galileo and Mars Global Survey orbiters, of Earth and Mars was created to allow viewers to gain a better understanding of the relative sizes of the two planets.

Mars has two moons, Phobos and Deimos, which are both pockmarked with craters.

A day on Mars, called a sol, lasts about 24.6 hours, which is just a little longer than a day on Earth. A Martian year is equal to 1.88 Earth years (687 Earth days).

Credit: NASA