Cydonia Mensae

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The Cydonia Region taken by the Viking 1 orbiter and released by NASA/JPL on July 25, 1976 (north is to the upper right).
The Cydonia Region taken by the Viking 1 orbiter and released by NASA/JPL on July 25, 1976 (north is to the upper right).

Cydonia Mensae is an albedo feature (region) on Mars. It lies in the planet's northern hemisphere in a transitional zone between the heavily cratered regions to the South, and relatively smooth plains to the North. Some planetologists believe that the northern plains may once have been ocean beds[1] and that Cydonia may have been a coastal zone (though this is still uncertain).[2] Cydonia is covered in numerous mesas, some of which have attracted both scientific[3] and popular attention.[4][5]

Contents

[edit] Face on Mars

Cropped version of the original batch-processed photo (#35A72) of the 'Face on Mars'. The black dots that give the image a speckled appearance are data errors.
Cropped version of the original batch-processed photo (#35A72) of the 'Face on Mars'. The black dots that give the image a speckled appearance are data errors.
The second 1976 Viking image (left, image #70A13) compared with the 2001 Mars Global Surveyor image (right). 20 meters per pixel resolution.
The second 1976 Viking image (left, image #70A13) compared with the 2001 Mars Global Surveyor image (right). 20 meters per pixel resolution.
High resolution Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter image of the "Face on Mars". Taken using the onboard HiRISE camera.
High resolution Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter image of the "Face on Mars". Taken using the onboard HiRISE camera.

One of the Cydonian mesas, situated at 40.75° north latitude and 9.46° west longitude[6], took on the striking appearance of a humanoid Face on Mars in a photo taken by Viking 1 on July 25, 1976. This discovery was made independently by two computer engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Vincent DiPietro and Gregory Molenaar.[7] While searching through NASA archives they discovered two misfiled images, Viking frames 35A72[8] and 70A13. When the images were originally acquired in 1976, Viking chief scientist Gerry Soffen dismissed the "face" in image 35A72 as a "[trick] of light and shadow".[9][10] However, a second image, 70A13, also shows the "face" and was acquired 35 Viking orbits later at a different "sun-angle" than the 35A72 image.

Some commentators, most notably Richard C. Hoagland, believe it to be evidence of a long-lost Martian civilization along with other features they believe are present, such as apparent pyramids, which they argue are part of a ruined city. Image analysis of the early Viking images led a few researchers to suggest that the features of the Face might not be an accidental consequence of viewing conditions.[3]

However, today it is generally accepted to be an optical illusion, an example of pareidolia.[11] After analysis of the higher resolution Mars Global Surveyor data NASA stated that "a detailed analysis of multiple images of this feature reveals a natural looking Martian hill whose illusory face-like appearance depends on the viewing angle and angle of illumination".[12] Similar optical illusions can be found in the geology of Earth; an example is the Badlands Guardian, which resembles a human head wearing a Native American headress.[13]

Originally, eighteen images of the Cydonia Mensae region were taken by the Viking 1 and Viking 2 orbiters, but only seven have resolutions better than 250 m/pixel (820 ft/pixel). The other eleven images have resolutions worse than 550 m/pixel (1800 ft/pixel) and are virtually useless for studying the feature. Of the seven good images, the lighting and time at which two pairs of images were taken are so close as to reduce the number to five usable, distinct images. The Mission to Mars: Viking Orbiter Images of Mars CD-ROM image numbers are: 35A72 (VO-1010), 70A13 (VO-1011), 561A25 (VO-1021), 673B56 & 673B54 (VO-1063), and 753A33 & 753A34 (VO-1028).[14]

More than 20 years after the Viking 1 photographs were taken, a succession of spacecraft visited Mars and collected new data from the Cydonia region. These spacecraft have included NASA's Mars Global Surveyor (1997—2006)[15] and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (2006—),[16] and the European Space Agency's Mars Express probe (2003—).[17] In contrast to the relatively low resolution of the Viking images of Cydonia, these new platforms afford much improved resolution. For instance, the Mars Express images are at a resolution of 14 m/pixel (46 ft/pixel) or better. By combining data from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on the Mars Express probe and the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) on board NASA's Mars Global Surveyor it has been possible to create a 3D representation of the "Face on Mars".[15]

Aside from speculation concerning their artificial origins, Cydonia and the Face on Mars also appear frequently in popular culture, including feature films, television series, videogames, comic books, and even music.[18] Astronomer Carl Sagan criticized much of the speculation about the Face in an eponymous chapter of his book The Demon Haunted World.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Head, J.W., Kreslavsky, M., Hiesinger, H., Ivanov, M., Pratt, S., Seibert, N., Smith, D.E. and Zuber, M.T. (1998). Oceans in the past history of Mars: Tests for their presence using Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data. Geophysical Research Letters 25, 4401-4404.
  2. ^ Malin, M. C. and Edgett, K. S. (1999). Oceans or seas in the Martian northern lowlands: High resolution imaging tests of proposed coastlines. Geophysical Research Letters 26, 3049-3052.
  3. ^ a b Carlotto, M. J. (1988) Digital Imagery Analysis of Unusual Martian Surface Features. Applied Optics 27, 1926-1933.
  4. ^ Whitehouse, D. (2001-05-25). Nasa: No face - honest. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-11-09.
  5. ^ Britt, R.R. (2006-09-22). Face on Mars gets makeover. CNN. Retrieved on 2007-11-09.
  6. ^ Rayl, A.J.S. (2007-03-16). The Empire Strikes Back Europe's First Trip to Mars Brings Home "The Gold". Planetary Society. Retrieved on 2008-06-05.
  7. ^ Gardner, M. (1985). The Great Stone Face and Other Nonmysteries. Skeptical Inquirer 10, 14-18.
  8. ^ Viking News Center (1976-07-31). Caption of JPL Viking Press Release P-17384 (35A72). NASA. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  9. ^ Hoagland, Richard (1996). The Monuments of Mars — A City on the Edge of Forever, 4th edition (in English), Frog Books, pg. 5. ISBN 1883319307. 
  10. ^ Pixel Inversion - NASA's Misinformation on the Mars Face. Paranormal News (1999-08-25). Retrieved on 2008-05-29.
  11. ^ Britt, R.R. (2004-03-18). Scientist attacks alien claims on Mars. CNN. Retrieved on 2007-10-12.
  12. ^ The Face on Mars, Viking Project. NASA website. Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  13. ^ Badlands Guardian Geological Feature. Google Maps. Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  14. ^ Mission to Mars: Viking Orbiter Images of Mars website, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory; raw data in IMQ (ImageQ) format can be downloaded from these links: 35A72, 70A13, 561A25, 673B56, 673B54, 753A33, 753A34. Retrieved on 20 September 2007.
  15. ^ a b Cydonia's 'Face on Mars' in 3D animation using Mars Global Surveyor imagery. ESA website (2006-10-23). Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  16. ^ Popular Landform in Cydonia Region. HiRISE website. Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  17. ^ Cydonia - the face on Mars, 3D rendering of Mars Express imagery. ESA website (2006-09-21). Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
  18. ^ For example: Film - Mission to Mars (2000); TV series - The X-Files ("Space", 1993), Futurama ("Where The Buggalo Roam", 2002); Videogames - Zak McKracken (1988), X-COM: UFO Defense (1993); Comic books - Martian Manhunter #1 (1998); Music - Telemetry of a Fallen Angel by The Crüxshadows (1995), "Knights of Cydonia" by Muse (2006).

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[edit] Astronomy

[edit] "Face on Mars" as artifact