Could This Be an "Ancient Tomb" on MARS?
Updated: Oct 5, 2020
Is this remarkably symmetrical structure on Mars possibly an ancient tomb, or simply the result of natural geological erosion?
Bearing a striking similarity to the keyhole-shaped Japanese mound tombs from 400-700 AD, researchers George J. Haas and Greg Orme, suggested in 2013 that it may be an eroded ruin from an ancient Martian civilization.
Targeted and imaged in January 2011 by NASA's orbiting HiRISE/MRO camera, and measuring 2.5 km in length, this unusual object is the most prominent feature for 20 km in all directions. Scientists are not sure how it was formed geologically, Dr. Alfred McEwen, professor of planetary geology at the University of Arizona, suggests the feature was lifted up by faulting, or that the surrounding terrain has been eroded down over billions of years, or indeed both.
Mars image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
Original NASA image source page: https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_020794_1860
Original Research Source: George J. Haas, The Cydonia Institute
Science paper: A Wedge and Dome Formation Set within the Flat Plains of Libya Montes (PDF)
Full report at The Mars Archaeology Archive: https://www.secretmars.com/maa-044-keyhole-shaped-feature
