Can we fly a kite on mars?

The winds near the martian surface have only slightly greater speed than the winds near the Earth's surface. read more

Imagine trying to fly a kite at that altitude! Despite the low pressure, though, lighter than air balloons and unmanned reconnaissance airplanes are able to fly at that altitude. This gives us confidence that we could fly one on Mars. In addition, a kite is relatively unstable in flight, and might not be able to survive for very long on Mars. read more

Scientists of the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Laboratory have taken to kites that they fly above lava flows blanketing the Hawaiian landscape to unravel the past mysteries that shaped Mars. A kite, equipped with off-the-shelf instruments such as a camera, a GPS, and orientation sensors, scans the terrain from high above. read more

Focusing on wind speed may be a little misleading, as well. The atmosphere on Mars is about 1 percent as dense as Earth's atmosphere. That means to fly a kite on Mars, the wind would need to blow much faster than on Earth to get the kite in the air. read more