Scientists claim to have discovered tombs on the Red Planet that closely resemble ancient Japanese burials. This information instantly sparked the debate about whether life exists on Mars or was there before.
It all started with a video that appeared on the network. Its authors claimed that a keyhole-shaped mound was discovered on the surface of Mars, which closely resembled the Kofun tomb in Japan. The sides of the mound have straight edges, gradually turning into a circle. As soon as this video was published, articles with approximately the same title began to appear in many specialized publications - "Ufologists discovered a Japanese tomb on Mars."
The part of scientists who are trying to find traces of extraterrestrial civilizations, says that this video is yet another proof that the indigenous population of the Red Planet moved to Earth. Experts say that the humanoids had to leave their home planet as a result of some unknown cataclysm and settle down on another, building it up with their own structures.
In the American space agency NASA, such assumptions were refuted. Agency employees explained the flat sides of the Martian barrow by the fact that after billions of years the soil simply crumbled. And if we compare the Martian mound with Japanese tombs, then its edges are much smoother.
This situation is very similar to the story well known as "The Face on Mars". In the summer of 1976, astronomer Tobias Owen discovered a human face in images of the surface of the northern hemisphere of the Red Planet Kydonia. A few hours later, NASA specialists denied this information, stating that this was nothing more than a play of light and shadow, and that a second picture was taken several hours later, in which nothing similar was found.
The picture was taken with the Viking apparatus, which had imperfect lighting geometry and low resolution, which is why the face eventually appeared in the picture.
However, later, new images appeared, already of better quality - using the Mars Orbiter Camera and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The latter shows details quite accurately at a distance of up to 300 kilometers. There was no face on the surface of Mars, but this will not disbelieve the alien hunters that life existed on the Red Planet.
Soon there was a theory that the face on Mars was of man-made origin. This theory was presented to the world by the theoretical scientist Richard Hoagland, who was engaged in conspiracy theories. After acquaintance with the pictures, he wrote a book called "Monuments of Mars", in which he argued that the face is just one of the many Martian structures, among which there are not only pyramids, but entire cities. According to Hoagland, NASA has a lot of information that supports his hypothesis, but this information is hidden from the general public.
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At the same time, the American space agency provided information that ancient subglacial volcanoes existed on the surface of Mars. The corresponding images were obtained using the interplanetary multifunctional station Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The new information, according to NASA experts, confirms the previously existing theory that ancient subglacial volcanoes existed on the Red Planet in ancient times, which periodically erupted. According to scientists, billions of years ago, the surface of Mars was covered with a thick layer of ice. Constant volcanic eruptions led to the gradual melting of ice and the formation of a liquid ocean, which scientists have also proven to exist.
In addition, American scientists have found ice cauldrons on the planet, in which, presumably in ancient times, the life of microbes could exist. The attention of scientists was attracted by the Hellas pool, in which there were many mysterious funnels. Earlier, we note, it was considered that such an unusual relief of this area was formed under the influence of meteorite bombardments. But after a new study, it was revealed that some of these craters appeared as a result of volcanic activity.
The mysterious craters were very similar to the ice cauldrons found on our planet, in particular, in Greenland and Iceland. With the help of computer simulations, this assumption has been proven. The ice cauldrons were found to be the hottest spots on Mars. When volcanic activity stopped, ice and lava mixed and froze in this state.
As the scientists note, in these boilers the conditions were quite suitable for the emergence and existence of microbes. It is possible that the cauldrons in the wound contained warm liquid water loaded with nutrient chemicals.
And finally, the most recent find of scientists - evidence of the existence of rivers on Mars - streams of liquid salt water.
Seasonal rivers of salty liquid water have been discovered in the canyon system in the Marineri Valley. These canyons stretch for more than 4.5 thousand kilometers. Rivers flow through the Horowitz craters, Gale and Menios Canyon. Until recently, scientists were convinced that water on Mars is present mainly in the form of ice in the polar caps and in the near-surface layers of the surface.
Rivers are formed during the warm period when the temperature on the Red Planet reaches minus 23 degrees Celsius. As a rule, their width reaches no more than five meters, and their length does not exceed 600 meters. According to the researchers, the salts were found exclusively in the areas where these seasonal rivers flow, while in the neighboring territories no traces of such compounds were found.
Planetary scientists suggest that the presence of salt may indicate that life is possible on Mars. Roughly the same conditions exist on our planet - in the western part of South Africa and in the desert. These places are least suitable for life, since on average no more than 50 millimeters of precipitation falls there per year. The species diversity of fauna and flora (lichens, cacti, mosses) is very scarce, but nevertheless, life exists there as well. All this gives some hope to scientists who are trying to find traces of life on the Red Planet - in the past or present.
Mars is removed from the Sun at a distance one and a half times greater than the distance from the luminary of the Earth. The planet is devoid of a magnetic field that would protect it from cosmic radiation. The Martian atmosphere is 100 times more rarefied than Earth's, and consists primarily of carbon dioxide. Mars is seven times lighter than Earth, so it probably cooled faster to temperatures suitable for life during evolution. So life could once have existed there.
It has been experimentally proven that primitive microorganisms can survive in such harsh conditions. So, in particular, American scientists in the material received from the Surveyor 3 apparatus found terrestrial bacteria that had spent more than 2.5 years on the surface of Mars. This presented scientists with technical and ethical problems, which are associated with the need to prevent the colonization of terrestrial microorganisms on the Red Planet.
In addition to salty liquid water, scientists have also discovered methane on Mars. This substance cannot stay in the Martian atmosphere for a long time, and, according to the researchers, it can arise due to geological activity or the vital activity of microorganisms. The main sources of methane on our planet are living organisms. This has led some scientists to speculate that Mars is no exception.
Thus, the more scientists study Mars, the more questions they have. But most importantly, scientists should not succumb to the will of fantasy. There is nothing wrong with wanting to believe in the existence of life in the universe other than Earth. But it is necessary to take into account scientific facts and not blindly trust assumptions, thinking out and distorting information, often without even realizing it.