10. The Face on Mars is NOT proof of an ancient Martian civilization
The Cydonia region of Mars was first imaged in detail by Viking 1 on July 25, 1976, revealing the appearance of a humanoid face on a 2km long mesa on the Martian surface. Initially dismissed as a “trick of light and shadow”, the “face” has been since independently discovered by successive imaging allowing for three-dimensional representations of the feature.
Since release, the image has provoked sustained interest by ancient astronaut theorists, with the first speculations occurring less than a year later and even attracting attention by peer-reviewed publications such as the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society. The prevailing consensus among such conspiracy theorists, notably Richard Hoagland, is that the “Face on Mars” is evidence of an extinct Martian civilization and in conjunction with other surface features is part of a wider ruined city on the red planet.
Unfortunately for these alien enthusiasts, the “face” is in fact an optical illusion similar to those produced on Earth including the Badlands Guardian, Romanian Sphinx, or the Old Man of Hoy. A product of the psychological experience of “pareidolia” – a phenomenon in which the human mind responds to an external stimulus by perceiving a familiar pattern where none actually exists – subsequent imaging and analysis by the Mars Global Surveyor in 2001 produced the conclusion that “a detailed analysis of multiple images of this feature reveals a natural looking Martian hill whose illusory face-like appearance depends on the viewing angle and angle of illumination”.