In culture Mars

mars named after roman god of war. in different cultures, mars represents masculinity , youth. symbol, circle arrow pointing out upper right, used symbol male gender.

the many failures in mars exploration probes resulted in satirical counter-culture blaming failures on earth-mars bermuda triangle , mars curse , or great galactic ghoul feeds on martian spacecraft.

intelligent martians

the fashionable idea mars populated intelligent martians exploded in late 19th century. schiaparelli s canali observations combined percival lowell s books on subject put forward standard notion of planet drying, cooling, dying world ancient civilizations constructing irrigation works.

an 1893 soap ad playing on popular idea mars populated

many other observations , proclamations notable personalities added has been termed mars fever . in 1899, while investigating atmospheric radio noise using receivers in colorado springs lab, inventor nikola tesla observed repetitive signals later surmised might have been radio communications coming planet, possibly mars. in 1901 interview tesla said:

it time afterward when thought flashed upon mind disturbances had observed might due intelligent control. although not decipher meaning, impossible me think of them having been entirely accidental. feeling growing on me had been first hear greeting of 1 planet another.

tesla s theories gained support lord kelvin who, while visiting united states in 1902, reported have said thought tesla had picked martian signals being sent united states. kelvin emphatically denied report shortly before departing america: said inhabitants of mars, if there any, doubtless able see new york, particularly glare of electricity.

in new york times article in 1901, edward charles pickering, director of harvard college observatory, said had received telegram lowell observatory in arizona seemed confirm mars trying communicate earth.

early in december 1900, received lowell observatory in arizona telegram shaft of light had been seen project mars (the lowell observatory makes specialty of mars) lasting seventy minutes. wired these facts europe , sent out neostyle copies through country. observer there careful, reliable man , there no reason doubt light existed. given well-known geographical point on mars. all. story has gone world over. in europe stated have been in communication mars, , sorts of exaggerations have spring up. whatever light was, have no means of knowing. whether had intelligence or not, no 1 can say. absolutely inexplicable.

pickering later proposed creating set of mirrors in texas, intended signal martians.

in recent decades, high-resolution mapping of surface of mars, culminating in mars global surveyor, revealed no artifacts of habitation intelligent life, pseudoscientific speculation intelligent life on mars continues commentators such richard c. hoagland. reminiscent of canali controversy, these speculations based on small scale features perceived in spacecraft images, such pyramids , face on mars . planetary astronomer carl sagan wrote:

mars has become kind of mythic arena onto have projected our earthly hopes , fears.

martian tripod illustration 1906 french edition of war of worlds h. g. wells

the depiction of mars in fiction has been stimulated dramatic red color , nineteenth century scientific speculations surface conditions might support not life intelligent life. originated large number of science fiction scenarios, among h. g. wells war of worlds, published in 1898, in martians seek escape dying planet invading earth.

influential works included ray bradbury s martian chronicles, in human explorers accidentally destroy martian civilization, edgar rice burroughs barsoom series, c. s. lewis novel out of silent planet (1938), , number of robert a. heinlein stories before mid-sixties.

jonathan swift made reference moons of mars, 150 years before actual discovery asaph hall, detailing reasonably accurate descriptions of orbits, in 19th chapter of novel gulliver s travels.

a comic figure of intelligent martian, marvin martian, appeared on television in 1948 character in looney tunes animated cartoons of warner brothers, , has continued part of popular culture present.

after mariner , viking spacecraft had returned pictures of mars is, apparently lifeless , canal-less world, these ideas mars had abandoned, , vogue accurate, realist depictions of human colonies on mars developed, best known of may kim stanley robinson s mars trilogy. pseudo-scientific speculations face on mars , other enigmatic landmarks spotted space probes have meant ancient civilizations continue popular theme in science fiction, in film.