Besides the contributions from rovers and landers, "our view of the red planet has largely been restricted to looking at the surface" from orbiting spacecraft, said lead researcher GarethMorgan, a planetary scientist at the Smithsonian Institution.
Kevin Morgan replaces the injured Gareth Thomas at full-back, while James Hook and Jamie Robinson are the centre duo and Dafydd James gets a chance on the wing.
With Kevin Morgan short of match practice due to injury and Gareth Thomas left out, the match is a chance for another player to lay a claim on the Wales 15 jersey.