CNN Indonesia
Friday, 06 Oct 2023 11:14 IWST
A bear-like appearance on the surface of Mars. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona)
Jakarta, CNN Indonesia —
Surface part Mars shows a similar appearance bear. This is said to be related to the crater structure and rocks of the ‘red planet’.
The image was taken by a camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter probe, called the High Resolution Imaging Experiment (HiRISE) in December 2022.
NASA, the US space agency, then shared it on Thursday (5/10).
“The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captured the pieces ursine pareidolia “This (bear-like appearance, ed) was on December 12 2022,” said the statement NASA.
“Even though it resembles a bear we might see on Earth, it is actually a hill on Mars with a strange shape.”
Pareidolia is an optical illusion phenomenon in the form of recognizing images or patterns that do not actually exist.
NASA revealed that the surface structure of Mars experienced a V-shaped collapse forming the ‘bear’ nose. Meanwhile, two craters form the eyes, and a circular fault pattern forms the head.
“The circular fracture pattern may have been caused by the deposition of sediment over a buried impact crater.”
Launched on August 12, 2015, MRO studied the history of water on Mars and observed small-scale features on the planet’s surface.
So far, researchers still have no traces of organisms and liquid water on Mars. Finally, NASA’s Perseverance rover discovered organic material in the Jezero Crater area in July.
However, researchers say these materials may be of “biotic” origin or the result of life on this planet. However, there is also the possibility of formation from other pathways, such as interactions between water and dust or being dropped onto the planet by dust or meteors.
The reason for the appearance of the illusion
NASA said the appearance of a space object resembling something known is a normal phenomenon.
“Do you remember as a child looking up into the blue sky and seeing clouds that looked like lambs, or horses, or other creatures or objects familiar on Earth?”
This institute says the same visual/mental phenomenon occurs in space images that have rocks, dust and other natural patterns.
“This happens because our human brain often tries to see familiar shapes, something we can relate to,” according to explanation NASA.
This also happens to clouds, rocks, celestial bodies. For example, the case of the “man on the Moon”, an image of a nebula that some people consider to be an x-ray of a hand.
Additionally, scientists discovered a large rock on Mars that they named “Pooh Bear”, 1997; NASA’s Viking 1 spacecraft sights a hilltop resembling a human face in a region of Mars called Cydonia, 1976.
The problem is, this appearance is often modified in such a way that it deviates from the original image and is strengthened by removing the original description.
“The resulting images and videos are fun to look at, but not scientifically accurate. In an ideal world, such parables would clearly be characterized as illustrations or dramatizations,” NASA complained.
“So things can get murky and confusing.”
(team/arh)
2023-10-06 04:14:00
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