The southern summers happen at the perigee, with temperatures reaching 70 degrees Fahrenheit, in comparison to the freezing conditions of the minus 190 degree temperatures of the southern winter. At apogee, the planet travels at a slower rate, resulting in a winter which lasts six Earth months. On the other hand, the northern half of Mars is much more calm and milder. It gets as cold as it does in the south during winter, but the northern winter occurs when it is closer to the Sun, or rather, when it is orbiting faster around it. The consequences of which is still a harsh winter but in a comparatively short season that lasts only five Earth months.
Northern summer happens at apogee, the upshot being that it last a relatively long time.
Volcanoes One of the most distinct characteristics of Mars are its volcanoes, most of which dwell in an area called the Tharsis Bulge. This huge lump near the equator of Mars rises four miles above the planet's average elevation and covers more than one-tenth of its surface. The volcanoes here are by far the largest in the Solar System, with the grandest being Olympus Mons. It is over fifteen miles high with a base 310 miles wide. Earth's largest volcano, on the other hand, is Hawaii's Mauna Loa, standing only less than 5 miles above the ocean floor.