Iconic British singer David Bowie and his band the Spiders from Mars have been immortalized in rock music culture since the early 1970s. Now, the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft has captured images of surface structures on the red planet that bear a striking resemblance to spiders.
However, these spider-like formations are not the work of arachnids. Instead, they are created by layers of carbon dioxide ice on Mars. The pressure from the gas trapped beneath the ice causes it to burst through and bring up dark dust, shaping the spider-like patterns on the surface.
While these images add to our understanding of Mars and its geological processes, they do not suggest the presence of actual life on the planet. Nonetheless, the discovery is significant and showcases the ongoing exploration of Mars by scientific researchers.
The PR department at the European Space Agency is particularly excited about the images, as they provide an opportunity to reference David Bowie and his fictional rock persona Ziggy Stardust in relation to the spider-like structures on Mars. This connection between the legendary musician and the mysterious patterns on the red planet is sure to capture the public’s imagination.
This discovery is not the first time that ESA Mars probes have made intriguing findings. Each new piece of information gathered from Mars helps scientists piece together the planet’s complex history and evolution. As technology continues to advance, we can only anticipate more exciting discoveries to come from our exploration of the fascinating planet.
