Snapped by the HiRISE camera and showing a place called Ius Chasma in Vallis Marineris, the pic reveals a face tilted to the left, with two uneven eyes, with the left one boasting a long scar underneath, a small nose, and no mouth. This is why you’ll probably forgive yourself for seeing another one in the image we have here. One of them showed a location on the planet that looked like an “enormous head nearly two miles from end to end.” And those are NASA’s words.ĭespite scientists proving since then, it was all a trick of light and shadow in “just another Martian mesa,” the myth of the Martian face endures to this day. Back in the 1980s, a spacecraft called Viking 1 traveled to Mars and started snapping photos of the place. The most famous such (let’s call it) structure is called exactly that, the Face on Mars. For some reason, we humans seem to believe that if a civilization once existed (or visited) the Red Planet, proof of their passage can be found in remnants of structures that resemble that of a humanoid face. Use the link at right above to access these separately.įor more information on Mars Express HRSC images, please read our updated FAQ (frequently asked questions).That’s right, faces. This article includes several 3D anaglyph as well as other images. The systematic processing of the HRSC image data is carried out by the German Aerospace Center (DLR), while the images shown here were processed by the PI group at the Institute for Geosciences, Freie Universitaet (Free University), Berlin, in cooperation with DLR's Institute of Planetary Research, Berlin. The team consists of 45 co-investigators from 32 institutions and 10 nations.
The HRSC instrument and science team is led by Principal Investigator Prof.
Image resolution has been decreased for use on the internet. The 3D anaglyph images (shown in the accompanying article linked at right, above) were derived from the stereo and nadir channels.
The perspective views have been calculated from the digital terrain model derived from the stereo channels. The colour scenes were derived from three HRSC-colour channels. 'Face on Mars' in Cydonia region, perspective The idea that the planet might have once been home to intelligent beings has since inspired the imagination of many Mars fans, and has been expressed in numerous, more-or-less serious, newspaper articles as well as in science-fiction literature and on many Web pages. The array of nearby structures has been interpreted by some space enthusiasts as artificial landscapes, such as potential pyramids and even a disintegrated city. Nonetheless, the 'Face on Mars' was the subject of widespread speculation on the possible origins and purpose of artificial structures on the Red Planet, with the face being the most talked-about formation. One of these visible remnant massifs became famous as the 'Face on Mars' in an image taken on 25 July 1976 by the American Viking 1 Orbiter.Ī few days later, on 31 July 1976, a NASA press release said the formation "resembles a human head." However, NASA scientists had already correctly interpreted the image as an optical illusion caused by the illumination angle of the Sun, the formation's surface morphology and the resulting shadows, giving the impression of eyes, nose and mouth. 'Human face' first seen in 1976 'Face on Mars' illusion as seen by Viking 1 This transition is characterized by wide, debris-filled valleys and isolated remnant mounds of various shapes and sizes. "They not only provide a completely fresh and detailed view of an area famous to fans of space myths worldwide, but also provide an impressive close-up over an area of great interest for planetary geologists, and show once more the high capability of the Mars Express camera."Ĭydonia is located in the Arabia Terra region on Mars and belongs to the transition zone between the southern highlands and the northern plains of Mars. "These images of the Cydonia region on Mars are truly spectacular," said Dr Agustin Chicarro, ESA Mars Express Project Scientist. Cydonia lies at approximately 40.75° North and 350.54° East.
The data were gathered during orbit 3253 over the Cydonia region, with a ground resolution of approximately 13.7 metres per pixel.
#LATEST FACE OF MARS SERIES#
After multiple attempts to image the Cydonia region from April 2004 until July 2006 were frustrated by altitude and atmospheric dust and haze, the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board Mars Express finally obtained, on 22 July, a series of images that show the famous 'face' on Mars in unprecedented detail.
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