Mars Weather and Seasons

Overview

Students discover that Mars, like Earth, has weather and seasons. By comparing daily weather on Earth with data from Mars, students practice observation and recording skills while learning that Mars is a cold, dry world with dust storms instead of rain storms.

Background for Teachers

Mars has seasons because, like Earth, its axis is tilted (about 25 degrees compared to Earth’s 23.5 degrees). However, Mars’s year is nearly twice as long as Earth’s (687 Earth days), so each season lasts roughly twice as long. Temperatures on Mars are extreme: summer daytime near the equator can reach about 70 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius), but nighttime temperatures plunge to -100 degrees Fahrenheit (-73 degrees Celsius) or colder. Mars has no rain — instead, it has massive dust storms that can cover the entire planet.

Lesson Procedure

Warm-Up (10 minutes)

1. Ask students: “What is the weather like today?” Record responses.
2. Review weather vocabulary: sunny, cloudy, rainy, windy, cold, hot.
3. Ask: “Do you think Mars has weather? What do you think it might be like?”

Guided Comparison (15 minutes)

1. Show simplified Mars weather data alongside today’s local weather:

   • Temperature: “Today here it is [X] degrees. On Mars today it might be -80 degrees!”
   • Wind: “We have gentle breezes. Mars can have wind storms with dust blowing everywhere.”
   • Precipitation: “It rains and snows here. On Mars, it never rains — but it can snow carbon dioxide (dry ice)!”

2. Use a large number line or thermometer visual to show where Earth and Mars temperatures fall. Help students understand “below zero” as “colder than when water freezes.”

3. Introduce Mars dust storms: show a NASA image of a dust storm on Mars. Compare to a windy day on Earth.

Activity: Mars Weather Journal (15 minutes)

Students complete a simple two-column weather journal page:

• Left column: “Earth Weather Today” — draw and label using weather symbols
• Right column: “Mars Weather Today” — draw what Mars weather might look like based on what they learned

Provide weather symbol cards (sun, dust cloud, thermometer showing cold) for Mars entries.

Wrap-Up (5 minutes)

1. Share: “What surprised you about Mars weather?”
2. Key takeaway: Mars has weather and seasons like Earth, but it is much colder and has dust storms instead of rain.
3. Ask: “When people travel to Mars someday, what kind of clothes or shelter will they need?”

Assessment

• Formative: Participation in weather comparison discussion
• Product: Mars Weather Journal entry shows understanding of Mars weather characteristics
• Verbal check: Students can name at least one similarity and one difference between Earth and Mars weather

NGSS Alignment

• 1-ESS1-1: Use observations of the sun, moon, and stars to describe patterns that can be predicted
• 1-ESS1-2: Make observations at different times of year to relate the amount of daylight to the time of year

Extensions

• Track “Mars weather” for a week using simplified NASA Mars weather data (InSight or Curiosity weather reports)
• Compare temperatures using a classroom thermometer — mark “Earth today” and “Mars today” with colored tape
• Read The Shortest Day by Susan Cooper to connect seasons concepts