How do craters form on the Mars surface?
Meteors landing on the surface of Mars cause the craters we see. As meteors fall through the atmosphere, they heat up from friction with the air. Those meteors that make it to a planets surface without burning up are called meteorites. On Earth, many meteors are burned up before they hit the surface. The Earths strong gravitational pull causes meteors to accelerate rapidly through the atmosphere, creating more friction and more heat. Mars has less gravitational pull and less atmosphere than Earth, so there is less friction and less heating. More meteors make it to the Martian surface and therefore more craters are made. On impact, the energy from the collision melts the surfacesof the planet and the meteorite. The molten material bounces away from the surface. Planets with less gravity permit the material to travel farther before being pulled back to the surface of the planet, so the crater rings are larger and have lower walls.
