Here Are 7 of the Strangest Images Photographed on Mars

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Exploring Mars has been always of great importance to humans.

Not only because Mars is relatively close to Earth, but because the red planet is eerily similar to our own planet in a number of ways.

The very first lander with a rover that touched down on Mars was the Mars Pathfinder, a U.S. spacecraft that landed a base station with a roving probe on Mars on July 4, 1997.

Consisting of a lander and a small 10.6 kilograms (23 lb) wheeled robotic rover named Sojourner, it became the first rover to operate on the surface of Mars.

Sojourner takes Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer measurements of the Yogi Rock. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons.
Sojourner takes Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer measurements of the Yogi Rock. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

But soon after, other rovers and spacecraft would follow, and we would come to realize that Mars was not the dead, barren world we had once imagined it was.

It was a planet eerily similar to Earth.

Eventually, we came to find that Mars had a thick atmosphere. It had massive oceans, lakes, and rivers, and most likely met all the necessary conditions to support life as we know it.

And the more we explored Mars, the more we were left astounded.

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During our long journey exploring the red planet, we have photographed and analyzed it the best way we could given our current technology.

Not long ago we listened into what Mars sounds like, and we managed to record the very first ‘Marsquake‘.

But in addition to exploring and analyzing Mars, the spacecraft orbiting it, as well as the rovers on its surface have taken some pretty impressive, and weird images.

Here, we have selected our favorite images.

The best, weird, of Mars

An image snapped by NASA’s Curiosity rover on May 7, 2015, seems to show what appears to be a Pyramid on the surface of Mars.

Ummm... Is that a pyramid on Mars? Not really, its just an oddly shaped rock. We can thank wind erosion for that.
Ummm… Is that a pyramid on Mars? Not really, it’s just an oddly shaped rock. We can thank wind erosion for that. Image Credit: NASA.

But more pyramids exist on Mars, according to claims.

A hill on Mars. The pyramid shape is due to erosion.
A hill on Mars. The pyramid shape is due to erosion. Image Credit: NASA.

This one, for example, is much larger. Although it’s just a hill. And again, we can thank erosion for the shape.

The face on Mars is another stunning image we can’t leave out of the list. The explanation for this image is that lighting conditions and the camera angle caused the orbiter to photograph a natural formation resembling a face.

The famous face of Mars. Image taken by the Viking 1 orbiter on July 25, 1976.
The famous face of Mars. Image taken by the Viking 1 orbiter on July 25, 1976. Image Credit: NASA/JPL.

Another strange image captured on Mars is the crab-like creature some users claim to see in the next image.

The image made headlines around the world when UFO hunters reported seeing a crab on Mars. Do you think anything could survive on the surface of Mars today? Here’s the image, and judge for yourself.

Crab's on Mars? Not likely. More like Pareidolia.
Crab’s on Mars? Not likely. More like Pareidolia. Image Credit: NASA.

Here’s the original image of the above image.

Do you see the odd shape? Image Credit: NASA.
Do you see the odd shape? Image Credit: NASA.

Then there’s a massive sphere in the middle of Mars.

Surface of Mars taken by Mars Global Surveyor. Image Credit: NASA / Wikimedia Commons.
The surface of Mars taken by Mars Global Surveyor. Image Credit: NASA / Wikimedia Commons.

As we’ve written in previous articles, the massive sphere is seen in a photographed filed under “M1501228a” and taken in 1999 by the Mars Global Surveyor’s mission.

Not a cannonball on Mars.

What some users thought was an alien artifact on Mars is actually a concretion less than a quarter inch (5 mm) in size. NASA analysed it using its rover and found it's actually made up of calcium sulfate, sodium and magnesium. Image Credit: NASA.
What some users thought was an alien artifact on Mars is actually a concretion less than a quarter inch (5 mm) in size. NASA analyzed it using its rover and found it’s actually made up of calcium sulfate, sodium, and magnesium. Image Credit: NASA.

Although some internet users were quick to jump to conclusions where NASA posted this image from Mars, the truth is that it’s not evidence of aliens, and it is not a cannonball on Mars.