are still usually attached to navies, or the
armed forces of the sea. But marines
may serve on land or in the air as well as
at sea.
Marines Today
A number of countries have marine
forces. They include Brazil, China,
France, Indonesia, Mexico, The Netherlands,
and Pakistan. The Royal Marines
is the marine force of the United Kingdom.
It is a part of the Royal Navy.
The United States Marine Corps is the
most famous marine force. The U.S.
Marine Corps is within the U.S. Department
of the Navy. U.S. Marines have
served in all the wars of the United
States. They are mainly land and air
fighters. But they do use ships to attack
coastlines and to carry supplies. U.S.
The French marigold is a bushy
plant with bright flowers.
A Sea Knight helicopter used by U.S.
Marines lands on a ship near the Philippines.
56 Marines BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
Marines also provide protection for certain
U.S. government workers in foreign
countries. The U.S. Marine Corps’
motto is Semper Fidelis, which is Latin
for “always faithful.”
History
The use of marines in wars dates back to
ancient times. During the 400s BC wellarmed
soldiers fought aboard Greek
warships. During the 200s and 100s BC
some Roman soldiers were specially
trained to fight on warships as well.
The Dutch and the English organized
the first modern groups of marines during
the 1660s. It was at this time that
the word marine first came into use.
However, as cannons and other large
guns were developed, marines did less
fighting on ships. Today such fighting
rarely, if ever, happens.
#More to explore
Navy •War
Marquette,
Jacques
Father Jacques Marquette and Louis
Jolliet were the first white men to
explore the upper Mississippi River.
Marquette’s writings told Europeans
about the river and its course.
Jacques Marquette was born on June 1,
1637, in Laon, France. He became a
Roman Catholic priest as a young man.
In 1666 Marquette went as a missionary
to New France (now Canada). In 1671
he moved to the north shore of the
Straits of Mackinac (a channel that connects
Lake Michigan and Lake Huron).
There he founded the Saint Ignace mission.
Louis Jolliet, a young explorer, visited
Saint Ignace in December 1672. The
governor of New France had sent him to
explore the Mississippi River. On May
17, 1673, Marquette, Jolliet, and five
A drawing shows Father Jacques Marquette
during his travels.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Marquette, Jacques 57
other men set out from Saint Ignace in
two bark canoes. They used the Fox and
Wisconsin rivers to get from Lake
Michigan to the Mississippi River. Marquette
preached to the Native Americans
along the way.
At the mouth of the Arkansas River, in
what is now Arkansas, they learned from
the Native Americans that the Mississippi
flowed into the Gulf of Mexico.
They went no farther because the land
further along was Spanish territory.
They turned back, though Marquette
went only as far as Green Bay, in what is
nowWisconsin. There he wrote a report
about the journey.
During the journey, Marquette had
fallen ill. In 1674 he traveled to what is
now Illinois. He wanted to start a mission
among a group of Native Americans.
He reached them in the spring of
1675, but there his health grew worse.
On May 18, 1675, on the way back to
Saint Ignace, he died.
#More to explore
Jolliet, Louis • Mississippi River
Mars
Mars is one of the planets that orbit, or
travel around, the sun in the solar
system. It is the fourth planet from the
sun. It is also Earth’s outer neighbor.
Mars travels around the sun at an
average distance of about 142 million
miles (228 million kilometers). It has
two small, rocky moons, Phobos and
Deimos.
For centuries people have wondered
whether there is life on Mars. Studies
have shown that there are no obvious
signs of life on the planet. However,
scientists are still trying to find out if
very tiny, simple life-forms may have
ever existed on Mars.
Physical Features
Mars is the second smallest planet in the
solar system, after Mercury. Its diameter,
or distance through its center, is about
4,200 miles (6,800 kilometers). That is
about half the size of Earth’s diameter.
Mars has layers like Earth’s. These layers
consist of a metal core; a thick, rocky
middle; and a crust.
The surface of Mars consists of rock and
dust. There are many large dust storms.
Parts of the planet have many pits called
craters. The landscape includes plains,
deep valleys, and high mountains.
Mars was
named for the
ancient Roman
god of war.
People saw the
planet’s red
color and
thought of
anger and
blood.
A picture of Mars taken by the Mars Global
Surveyor shows an ice cap at the top of the
planet. White clouds made of water and ice
are also visible.
58 Mars BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
The atmosphere, or layer of gases, surrounding
Mars is thin. It does not trap
heat well. The temperature at the surface
of Mars is about .28° F (.33° C) in the
afternoon. But it cools to about .118° F
(.83° C) before dawn.
Water is rare in the solar system, except
on Earth.Water exists on Mars as ice
caps at its north and south poles, or
ends, and as patches of ice beneath its
surface. Small amounts of water are also
