The Martian New Year Happens On February 7
Many people on earth celebrate the new year on January 1. With NASA, SpaceX, and other companies looking to put humans on the surface of Mars in the future and potentially start a base there, holidays on the Red Planet will be quite different from here on earth. One example is that Mars celebrates its new year on February 7.A year on Mars lasts 687 Earth days because it has a much wider orbit than Earth. Since the planet orbits slower, any human in the distant future who might be born on the Red Planet would have fewer birthdays than anyone born on Earth. The ESA says that you would have to divide your current age by 1.88 to get your Martian age.
Another interesting tidbit about Mars is while it's the year 2021 here on Earth, on Mars, it's year 36. The counting of Martian years started in 1955, according to the ESA. The first Martian year coincided with a large dust storm in its second half called "the great dust storm of 1956." Another thing future humans will have to deal with on Mars is longer days, which are known as sols.
Martian day lasts for roughly 24 hours and 39 minutes. That extra time literally gives more time in the day, something many people here on Earth wish for. This will be an exciting year for Mars, with three spacecraft sent by different countries set to reach the Red Planet. Spacecraft are in transit from NASA, China, and the United Arab Emirates.
One of the most exciting missions is the NASA spacecraft, which also has a helicopter aboard. The mission and helicopter experiment will have a significant impact on future exploration if flight is possible on Mars. If you miss this year's Martian new year celebration, the next happens on December 26, 2022.