Is that you, Woody? NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured a formation that looks like … [+]
Mars would be a pretty boring place for a bird. There are no birds – or any other life forms that we are currently aware of – on the red planet. The next best thing for the bird-watching and space-fan crowd is a fantastic formation of the Martian landscape that looks like a woodpecker when viewed from orbit. It’s the latest example of Martian pareidolia – the human tendency to see familiar shapes in random objects.
The Science Experiment’s High-Resolution Imaging Camera is part of NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, a spacecraft that has been orbiting the red planet since 2006. The camera captured the look-alike bird in May. “This image reveals some bright material on the floor of a crater, some of which forms a woodpecker-like outline,” HiRise principal investigator Alfred McEwen wrote in a photo of the day on July 11. The model resembles the cartoon character Woody. The woodpecker, best known for his red head feathers and repetitive laugh.
A formation on the floor of a crater on Mars resembles the cartoon character Woody Woodpecker. This is one … [+]
The random formation may be related to the history of water on the red planet. “This bright material appears to have collected in relatively low topographic areas, possibly bright material carried and deposited by water in Mars’ past,” McEwen said. “Concentric (woodpecker body) boxes may be collapse features as seen elsewhere nearby.” Mars is a very dry place today, but it hasn’t always been that way. NASA’s Perseverance rover, for example, has explored the remains of a lake and river delta in Jezero Crater.
Mars has a way of reminding us of home through the power of pareidolia. It is the same phenomenon that allows us to see sheep or dragons in the fluffy forms of clouds here on Earth. Martian rocks may look like an avocado, a sea creature, or a Star Trek symbol. MRO looked at Mars in late 2022 and noticed a surface structure resembling a bear’s face, complete with craters for eyes and a fracture pattern forming a round head.
The HiRise team – based at the University of Arizona – regularly shares eye-catching images of woodpeckers and bears. The fantastic menagerie is part of the camera crew’s efforts to reach out to the public.
NASA’s Viking 1 orbiter first snapped the “Face on Mars” in 1976. MRO later obtained a higher resolution … [+]
One of the most famous examples of Martian pareidolia is the Face on Mars image taken by NASA’s Viking 1 spacecraft, one of NASA’s early emissaries to the red planet. A low-resolution image from the mission showed a mound that resembled a human face. MRO’s fresh look at the “face” in 2023 underscored how sometimes a hill is just a hill.
The MRO images are a testament to the continued work of the powerful HiRise camera. It makes beautiful pictures, but it also helps scientists better understand the geological processes at work on Mars. “Our high-resolution camera capability (imaging up to 30 centimeters per pixel) remains unprecedented for any existing orbiter in the study of the red planet, and is an indispensable instrument to help select landing sites for exploration. robotic and future human.” said the HiRise team in an explainer.
The formation of the woodpecker in the crater should create audio memories of Woody’s constant laughter. That makes Mars — a planet 140 million miles from Earth — feel a little closer to home.