Mars (Greek: Ares) is the god of War. The planet probably got this name due to its red color; Mars is sometimes referred to as the Red Planet. (An interesting side note: the Roman god Mars was a god of agriculture before becoming associated with the Greek Ares; those in favor of colonizing and terraforming Mars may prefer this symbolism. The name of the month March derives from Mars.

The first spacecraft to visit Mars was Mariner 4 in 1965. Several others followed including Mars 2, the first spacecraft to land on Mars and the two Viking landers in 1976 (left). Ending a long 20 year hiatus, Mars Pathfinder landed successfully on Mars on 1997 July 4 (right). In 2004 the Mars Expedition Rovers "Spirit" and "Opportunity" landed on Mars sending back geologic data and many pictures.

Mars is a planet of breathtaking vistas as well as a testament to human nature's unending quest to tame new frontiers. This virtual tour explores both the natural beauty of Mars and the efforts that man is taking to turn the planet into one which has an earth-like environment. Although Humanity has left it's mark, there are still plenty of opportunities for a person to discover places that no human has ever seen. The recent completion of the cable elevator has allowed a huge migration of people from Earth that will forever change this once lonely outpost. It's estimated that over 2000 people a week are arriving on Mars. This migration has caused a debate between the factions that want to turn Mars into a life sustaining planet ("The Greens") and those that want to leave Mars as it was before the arrival of humankind ("The Reds") is growing. Hopefully a compromise can be reached between these two factions without the violence that people usually bring to a conflict of this magnitude. Take this virtual tour of Mars and decide for yourself which future is the best one for mankind's newest frontier.