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Sun 21 Dec 2025 | 07:45 PM
Time passes slightly faster on the surface of Mars than on Earth, according to new scientific research that has precisely quantified the effect for the first time.
Physicists have found that time on Mars advances by an average of 477 microseconds per day compared with Earth, due to the Red Planet’s weaker gravitational pull.
The study was conducted by two physicists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the United States.
While the time difference may appear negligible, the researchers say it could have major implications for future space missions that require ultra-precise coordination between timekeeping systems on Earth, the Moon, and Mars, down to fractions of a second.
The findings are grounded in the theory of general relativity developed by Albert Einstein, which shows that time is influenced by gravity. Clocks tick faster in environments with weaker gravitational fields than in those with stronger gravity.
This principle has already been confirmed on Earth through satellite navigation systems, but is now being applied in detail to Mars.
According to the researchers, Mars has only about one-fifth of Earth’s gravitational strength. This is because its mass is roughly one-tenth that of Earth and because it orbits farther from the Sun, reducing the Sun’s gravitational influence. These factors combine to make time pass measurably faster on the Martian surface.
The study, reported by the science outlet ScienceAlert, notes that timekeeping on Mars is more complex than on the Moon.
This is due to the overlapping gravitational effects of the Sun, Earth, the Moon and Mars itself, as well as Mars’s more elliptical orbit. As a result, daily fluctuations in the time difference can reach up to 266 microseconds over the course of a Martian year.
The researchers also highlighted key differences in planetary cycles. A Martian year lasts 687 Earth days, while a single Martian day is about 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth. These variations add further challenges to designing accurate and stable time systems for long-term missions.
Scientists say that developing reliable and precise timekeeping infrastructure on Mars is essential for future exploration, including human landings. Accurate time synchronisation will be critical for communications, navigation and interplanetary positioning systems.
The researchers concluded that this breakthrough lays the foundation for a scalable time infrastructure beyond Earth, supporting a broader vision of sustained exploration and travel across the solar system.
