A stroll on Mars would be quite different from one here on Earth. It would look different, feel different, and sound different.

The surface of Mars features many of the same landforms as Earth – mountains, canyons, sand dunes, and wide-open plains. But much of the surface is coated with orange dust. A lot of it is lofted into the sky by the winds. The dust colors the sky in shades of pink and yellow.

The winds also stir up dust devils – rotating columns of dust that resemble tornadoes. They can be miles high. And dust storms can fire up across wide regions – and even cover the entire planet. The dust can be thick enough to blot out the Sun.

Clouds made of frozen water and carbon dioxide float high in the sky. Snow sometimes falls from the clouds, but most of it vaporizes before it hits the ground.

The Martian air is less than one percent as thick as Earth’s. So Mars walkers will need space suits to protect them. The suits also will protect them from the extreme cold. The average temperature on Mars is about 80 below zero Fahrenheit, and it rarely climbs above freezing. And the air is so thin that it carries little sound, so a stroll would be silent.

Mars walkers would feel a difference as well. The surface gravity on Mars is just three-eighths as strong as Earth’s. So a person who weighs 150 pounds on Earth would tip the scales at just 57 pounds on Mars – making for a bouncy stroll across the Red Planet.

Script by Damond Benningfield