Mars exploration. Artwork of a lander spacecraft descending to the surface of Mars as part of a mission to explore the planet. Most current technologies take months to reach Mars, though the final descent and ascent will likely involve the use of chemical rockets. Humans require protective suits and sealed vehicles to explore Mars. This is because the thin atmosphere is nearly all carbon dioxide, and the freezing surface temperature ranges from minus 89 to minus 31 degrees Celsius. Mars has no surface water and is a rocky desert world. It has a gravity that is about a third of that of Earth.