Mars

Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System after Mercury. In English, Mars carries a name of the Roman god of war, and is often referred to as the "Red Planet", because the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance that is distinctive among the astronomical bodies visible to the naked eye. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere, having surface features reminiscent both of the impact craters of the Moon and the valleys, deserts, and polar ice caps of Earth. It is also the capital world of the Settlement Defense Front throughout their reign in the solar system in 2156 until May 10, 2187.
It would appear that while Mars' terraforming efforts are still underway (the atmosphere is still composed mostly of carbon dioxide), although the planet's atmosphere has been thickened enough that a vacuum suit is no longer necessary when outside, with several characters during Operation Blood Storm, such as Gator, only needing to wear a breathing mask to prevent suffocation and asphyxiation.
== Overview ==
Mars is roughly half the diameter of Earth, with a surface area only slightly less than the total area of Earth's dry land. Mars is less dense than Earth, having about 15% of Earth's volume and 11% of Earth's mass, resulting in about 38% of Earth's surface gravity. The reddish appearance of the Martian surface is caused by iron(III) oxide, or rust. It can look like butterscotch; other common surface colors include golden, brown, tan, and greenish, depending on the minerals present.
Mars is a small terrestrial planet that consists of minerals containing silicon and oxygen, metals, and other elements that typically make up rock. The surface of Mars is primarily composed of tholeiitic basalt, although parts are more silica-rich than typical basalt and may be similar to andesitic rocks on Earth or silica glass. Regions of low albedo suggest concentrations of plagioclase feldspar, with northern low albedo regions displaying higher than normal concentrations of sheet silicates and high-silicon glass. Parts of the southern highlands include detectable amounts of high-calcium pyroxenes. Localized concentrations of hematite and olivine have been found. Much of the surface is deeply covered by finely grained iron(III) oxide dust.
Although Mars has no evidence of a structured global magnetic field, observations show that parts of the planet's crust have been magnetized, suggesting that alternating polarity reversals of its dipole field have occurred in the past. This paleomagnetism of magnetically susceptible minerals is similar to the alternating bands found on Earth's ocean floors. One theory, published in 1999 and re-examined in October 2005 (with the help of the Mars Global Surveyor), is that these bands suggest plate tectonic activity on Mars four billion years ago, before the planetary dynamo ceased to function and the planet's magnetic field faded.
It is thought that, during the Solar System's formation, Mars was created as the result of a stochastic process of run-away accretion of material from the protoplanetary disk that orbited the Sun. Mars has many distinctive chemical features caused by its position in the Solar System. Elements with comparatively low boiling points, such as chlorine, phosphorus, and sulphur, are much more common on Mars than Earth; these elements were probably pushed outward by the young Sun's energetic solar wind.
After the formation of the planets, all were subjected to the so-called "Late Heavy Bombardment". About 60% of the surface of Mars shows a record of impacts from that era, whereas much of the remaining surface is probably underlain by immense impact basins caused by those events. There is evidence of an enormous impact basin in the northern hemisphere of Mars, spanning 10,600 by 8,500 km (6,600 by 5,300 mi), or roughly four times the size of the Moon's South Pole – Aitken basin, the largest impact basin yet discovered. This theory suggests that Mars was struck by a Pluto-sized body about four billion years ago. The event, thought to be the cause of the Martian hemispheric dichotomy, created the smooth Borealis basin that covers 40% of the planet.
When the Settlement Defense Front established their primary seat of power in the red planet, their teraforming efforts are somehow underway, as Humans inside Mars only require a breather or any oxygenated headgear when entering the planet, not wearing any vacuum sealed outfits, although it's still better to wear astronaut suits, Combat Rigs or vacuum sealed outfits will always be more safer to wear when venturing in the SDF Ruled Martian Surface. so if a human is not wearing a breather, they would still suffocate to death as usual.
===Martian Polar Ice Caps===
Mars has two permanent polar ice caps. During a pole's winter, it lies in continuous darkness, chilling the surface and causing the deposition of 25–30% of the atmosphere into slabs of CO2 ice (dry ice). When the poles are again exposed to sunlight, the frozen CO2 sublimes. These seasonal actions transport large amounts of dust and water vapor, giving rise to Earth-like frost and large cirrus clouds. Clouds of water-ice were photographed by the Opportunity rover in 2004.
== Moons ==
Mars has two natural satellites, Deimos and Phobos. Deimos is home to solar-powered mining stations which generate valuable metal resources, which are sent down the gravity well to Mars. These outposts also serve as spaceports and refuelling stations for flights coming and going from Mars. Phobos, meanwhile, has the advantage of having lumps of iron and nickel rather than difficult-to-extract ores, making mining extremely simple and cost effective. This allowed the SDF to easily engage in warship construction. The competitive advantage this provided led to the construction of a geosynchronous orbital shipyard that provided ship-building services to the entire solar system until the outbreak of the Secession Wars.
== Locations ==
Thanks to the rovers exploring Mars, NASA has officially created a high quality image that shows the map of the red planet, with legitimate names on various regions. 
*Tharsis
**Olympus Mons
**Arsia Mons
**Pavonis Mons
**Ascraeus Mons
**Tharsis Tholus
**Biblis Tholus
**Jovis Tholus
**Ulysses Fosae
**Gigas Sulci
*Valles Marineris
**Lus Chasma
**Coprates Chasma
*Cydonia
*Ares Vallis
*Tartarus Montes
*Thaumasia Planum
*Xanthe Terra
*Vastitas Borealis
*Isidas Planitia
*Daedalia Planum
*Hellas Planitia
*Solus Planum
*Sinai Planum
*Bosporos Planum
*Icaria Planum
*Arabia Terra
*Terra Sabaea
*Utopia Planitia
== Gallery ==
CoD IW Retribution Crash Concept.jpeg
Operation Blood Storm.png|Cydonia, The capital of Mars and it has a space elevator.
Tharsis Shipyard.jpeg|Tharsis Shipyard Concept
== Trivia ==
==== General ====
*Mars is the roman god of war, the counterpart of the Greek God of War Ares.
*Mars is home to the tallest mountain in the solar system. Olympus Mons, a shield volcano, is 21km high and 600km in diameter. Despite having formed over billions of years, evidence from volcanic lava flows is so recent many scientists believe it could still be active.
*On Mars the Sun appears about half the size as it does on Earth. At the closest point to the Sun, the Martian southern hemisphere leans towards the Sun, causing a short, intensely hot summer, while the northern hemisphere endures a brief, cold winter: at its farthest point from the Sun, the Martian northern hemisphere leans towards the Sun, causing a long, mild summer, while the southern hemisphere endures a lengthy, cold winter.
*Mars lacks mobile tectonic plates.
*The humongous amounts of iron oxide present in the the planet's surface is caused by iron oxide, which we all know as rust.
* Has the largest dust storms in the solar system.
*There are signs of liquid water on Mars.
*Sunsets on Mars are blue. During the Martian day the sky is pinkish-red, this is the opposite of the Earth’s skies.
=== Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare ===
*The planet is partially terraformed by the Settlement Defense Front, as UNSA Soldiers' skin/flesh did not decay prior to their exposure to the atmosphere.
*Cydonia is the leading nation on the planet.
*Majority of SDF officials live on Cydonia.
*They have a Shipyard located above Tharsis.
Category:Planets