Red Planet Day 🚀

Overview

Red Planet Day is celebrated annually on November 28th to honor our celestial neighbor, Mars, and commemorate the launch of Mariner 4. Launched in 1964, Mariner 4 became the first spacecraft to successfully fly by Mars, providing humanity's initial close-up views of the red planet.

Origin and story

Red Planet Day commemorates the launch of Mariner 4, the first spacecraft to successfully fly by Mars.

Mariner 4 was launched by NASA on November 28, 1964, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Quick facts

• DateNovember 28
• TypeCultural / community observance
• Great forFriends, Families, Classrooms, Teams

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Ways to celebrate

This date marks the launch of a mission that deflated a century of Mars daydreams. NASA's Mariner 4 lifted off on November 28, 1964, and after a nearly eight-month journey became the first spacecraft to fly past Mars, sending back 21 grainy photos that showed a cratered, moon-like surface — not the canals and vegetation many astronomers had speculated about for decades.

Look at the actual first images

• Search for Mariner 4's original 1965 flyby photos to see exactly what scientists saw the moment humanity's Mars daydreams met hard data.

Read the mission's full story

Helpful resources: NASA Science covers Mariner 4's journey and findings in its Mariner 4 mission profile.

Compare it to what we know now

• Look up a current Mars rover photo alongside a Mariner 4 image to see just how far Mars imaging has come in six decades.

Did you know?

Mission team members were too impatient to wait for the computers to process the first image, so they printed out the raw numerical data, cut it into strips, and hand-colored each value with pastel crayons to sketch out what the picture would show before the official version was ready.

Fun facts

• Red Planet Day commemorates the launch of Mariner 4, the first spacecraft to successfully fly by Mars.
• Mariner 4 was launched by NASA on November 28, 1964, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
• It successfully transmitted 21 close-up images of Mars, revealing a cratered, moon-like surface.
• The reddish appearance of Mars is due to the presence of iron oxide, commonly known as rust, on its surface.

Sources and attribution

• Mariner 4 (NASA Science)

External links may lead to third-party websites.

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FAQ

When is Red Planet Day?

It is observed on November 28 each year.

What is Red Planet Day?

Red Planet Day is celebrated annually on November 28th to honor our celestial neighbor, Mars, and commemorate the launch of Mariner 4. Launched in 1964, Mariner 4 became the first spacecraft to successfully fly by Mars, providing humanity's initial close-up views of the red planet.

How do people celebrate Red Planet Day?

Look up Mariner 4's original 1965 Mars flyby images, compare them to a modern rover photo, and read up on the 1964 mission that first revealed Mars as a cratered, moon-like world.

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