Mars Fossils

The Mars Opportunity rover has returned several startling images of what could be fossils on Mars. Scientists are baffled by these strange and beautiful images. Presented in a colorful montage, you can show others what YOU think about the Fossils of Mars by proudling displaying these images on a t-shirt, coffee mug, mouse pad, or other products.

The montage features several possible fossils on Mars. In the upper left, an image of what might have been a segmented tube like creature. Somtimes described as a "crinoid," this amazing feature was unfortunately destroyed by the rover's RAT tool shortly after being discovered. However, on the upper right, the very same RAT operation revealed another tiny object, sometimes described as a "rotini". NASA scientists have not announced any official theory to explain either object. Also, the much more common spherules are featured in the center image. Sometimes seen attached to bizarre stalks, these blue-grey hematite rich objects have been the subject of much speculation. Averaging 3mm in size, they are sometimes called "blueberries," "marsberries", or simply "martian marbles". Although the official interpretation of the spherules is that they are naturally forming concretions, the spherules in this image show features normally only seen in living organisms. The two spherules on the bottom show what look like seams on one side, like you would see on a peach. This also sugests bilateral symetry. Perhaps the most amazing spherule is the color image in the center of the montage, which clearly shows a spherule attached to a long, delicate stem. Is it possible that the spherules are actually fossilized organisms of some kind? No offical explanation has been offered to explain how such an object could form.

For more information about the fossils of mars, see geocities.com/marsfossils