Mars

There's no getting around it: Mars is cool. First off, it's red and named after a war god -- can't beat that for coolness factor. Also, it's the closest planet to Earth and pretty well identifiable in the night sky. And, while there have been some recent notable failures, we have had several orbiting and landing missions there, including a pair of never-say-die rovers. Mars is also a popular choice in literature and movies.

There are two diminutive moons orbiting the Red Planet: Phobos and Deimos.

• Mars at nineplanets.org
• Mars at wikipedia.org
• NASA's Mars Exploration Program

Martian volcanoes active?

Martian volcanoes "may be active" (BBC) "Fields of volcanic cones discovered at the North Pole of Mars suggest the Red Planet could still be geologically active, scientists have said."