Happy New Year, March! February 7 marks what could be a future Martian holiday



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This infographic from ESA explains how the New Year works on Mars.

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Sunday February 7, 2021 on Earth is a big deal for many humans. His Super Bowl Sunday. But it’s also a big deal on Mars as it marks the Martian New Year, an event that occurs much less often than on our own planet.

As we plan to someday send humans to Mars, we should start thinking more about the Martian vacation. A year on the Red Planet lasts 687 Earth days, so we would need a lot less champagne and noise makers than back home.

This week, the European Space Agency (ESA) offered some suggestions to mark the Martian New Year. “If you want to feel younger, just divide your current age by 1.88 and just tell your friends it’s your true age… on Mars,” ESA said.

We know it’s 2021 on Earth, but what year will it be on Mars? The answer: 36. “The count started in 1955,” ESA said. “This first Martian year coincided with a very large dust storm in its second half, aptly named” the great dust storm of 1956. “”

If you ever feel like you don’t have enough time during the day, Mars could be for you. Days on Mars (called “soils”) last about 24 hours and 39 minutes. From NASA The Curiosity rover just celebrated its 3,000 Martian days anniversary in January.

There are additional reasons for Earthlings to celebrate the Martian New Year this time around. It comes a few days before a trio of spacecraft sent by NASA, China and the United Arab Emirates reach the planet. They will arrive at slightly different times, and there is a lot of excitement around the NASA Perseverance rover lands on February 18.

The next New Year on Mars won’t happen until December 26, 2022, so pop the bubbly and toast the Red Planet and what promises to be an epic Martian year for exploration.

Follow CNET’s 2021 Space Calendar to stay up to date with all the latest space news this year. You can even add it to your own Google Calendar.

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