U.S.BONK-O-METER

Mars explained: the red planet

NASA's reference page says Mars has a day of twenty-four point six hours and a year of six hundred eighty-seven Earth days; it is half Earth's size.

On air: Hank Ledger and Vera Bullock on The Bonk-o-Meter
Published 6:56 AM ET, Wednesday, October 14, 2026

At a glance

First reported by NASA: “Mars explained: the red planet”.
Covered on BBN on Wednesday, October 14, 2026, at 6:56 AM ET on The Bonk-o-Meter, by Hank Ledger and Vera Bullock.
Topics: Mars.
BBN covered this story before: Mars cloud puzzle deepens as ASOS hack spams users (October 14).

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe claim under review: Mars is a strange alien world nothing like ours.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorNASA's reference page says it is the fourth planet from the Sun, cold, dusty, and about half the size of Earth.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorBut a Martian day is twenty-four point six hours, and ours is twenty-three point nine.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorThat's practically a roommate situation, and I see so much potential for growth.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorA year there lasts six hundred eighty-seven Earth days, and the seasons come in different lengths because the orbit is egg-shaped.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorEgg-shaped. Even the orbit is trying something new.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorIf Earth were a nickel, Mars would be a raspberry. It has two potato-shaped moons, Phobos and Deimos, that may be captured asteroids.
Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorPotatoes.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorSo the claim is half right: it is a desert world with a thin atmosphere, but its days, tilt and seasons look familiar.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorI rate it Mildly Bonkers, mostly because of the raspberry with potatoes.