The latest NASA "Image of the Day" image.

-
This composite of three artists' renderings from 1975 was only wish fulfillment for an unnamed JPL artist; however, the landscape and the rendered shapes took into account what was known about Mars that year.
-
Compared to Earth, Mars is further away from the light of the sun, very cold and very arid, and had a thin atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide but little nitrogen, an environment distinctly inhospitable to complex, Earth-like, carbon-based life forms. "Life on Mars" was envisioned as low to the ground, symmetrical and simple.
.
The artist drew silicon-based life forms, probably coached by others, perhaps scientists, who had thought about such possibilities. Peculiar saucer-like shapes stood only slightly above ground level, root-like structures reached outward for growth resources; a bundle of cones faced many directions for heat, light or food.
.
Instead of reality, the images embodied the artist's hope and anticipation of what future Martian exploration would find.
Image Credit: NASA/JPL
Παρασκευή, 25 Μαρτίου 2011 6:00:00 πμ
No comments:
Post a Comment