back to article Curiosity photographs mysterious metal object on Martian rock

Image analysis of shots taken by the Curiosity rover's MastCam last month appears to have revealed a shiny metal object sticking out of a rock on the Martian surface. Italian imaging specialist Elisabetta Bonora was going over Curiosity's latest photographs and found the object in a set of pictures taken by the rover on …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    We should ignore it

    mainly because doing so will drive the usual conspiracy theorists insane, thereby providing much entertainment.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Happy

      Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

      OK all reality to the wind here....

      To me it looks like a door handle to an underground vault.

      OK I am very interested see what it actually is, but "Far Out" - wouldn't you trip if it was.

      1. Destroy All Monsters Silver badge

        It begins

        To me it looks like a door handle to an underground vault.

        The whole audience: Just don't pull that door handle, Curiosity!!

      2. Fr. Ted Crilly Silver badge
        Alien

        Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

        Looks like an eroded 'spirit of ecstasy' from a Rolls Royce, did Elvis have a Rolls? Come to think of it Lord Lucan did..... aaaaahhh

      3. tuxtester
        Meh

        Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

        If it's a door handle, then there should be some other pieces of evidence to back that theory up:

        - a door bell

        - knockers (ooer)

        - a letter box

        - a door mat

        - a hanging plant

        - discarded milk bottles

        1. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge
          Happy

          Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

          Door handle? Also looks like the flushing handle in our toilet. If Curiosity pulls it, it might find the resulting evidence of water overwhelming

          1. wowfood

            Don't go into that TRAP DOOR!

            Because there's something down there.

            1. jai

              Re: Don't go into that TRAP DOOR!

              thank you sir! i'm going to be humming the theme to that show now all day

              (which is not a bad thing, so again, thanks!)

              1. Anonymous Coward
                Anonymous Coward

                Re: Don't go into that TRAP DOOR!

                And you got downvoted?

                Willy Rushton's spinning in his coffin!!

      4. Anonymous Coward
        Angel

        Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

        Unless it's a manufactured object - or even a crystalised former life form, the shape of the base on / into the rock is circular and it's radiused from the base, up into the shaft, and then there is the handle (like) bar on top....

        On a big brown shit hole, with rocks, dust and sand... it's very "non typical" in every respect - like shape, colour, design etc....

        While it COULD be some kind of crystal, or fossilised sea anenome, or kelp root, which may be totally feasable, it also happens to look much like an older style safe door handle.

      5. Uncle Siggy

        Re: We should ignore it ---- Why?

        I for one welcome our door handle wielding Martian overlords.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: We should ignore it

      just have a look on Google Maps for AREA 51 and you'll find it if you look long enough ;-)

    3. Andrew Moore

      Re: We should ignore it

      yeah, Desmond's probably under there and you know he has no time for visitors (he has to keep reseting that timer)

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: We should ignore it

      Already has. Surprised Reg took so long to dig it up. Been on some nut sites for a week.

      Many strange things found, almost nothing is ever explained. I understand NASA can't run off every time something strange pops up, but hopefully this will make it on a list of things to check out. the rover cant be far away, it doesn't move fast.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: We should ignore it

      On the original image

      https://images.4chan.org/sci/src/1360593572190.jpg

      there is an alien hiding behind a rock looking at the big mechanical war machine sent from planet 3 ...

      I expect he will go into his control room and aim a big beam weapon at us.

  2. James 47

    It's a bit of Beagle 2

    1. Pet Peeve
      Black Helicopters

      Somewhere in cuckoo land, Richard Hoagland just wet himself.

      I like the idea of it being a piece of a crashed probe (there's not exactly a shortage of them), with the rest of the wreckage just out of view over the apparent drop behind it. Rocks are fun, but let's do a little artifact hunting too!

    2. I think so I am?
      Joke

      Piss myself

      If it had made in China on it

      1. Anonymous Coward 101

        Re: Piss myself

        It's part of an old frying pan from a Chinese restaurant nearby. Is there anywhere in the galaxy that doesn't have one?

  3. Chris 171
    Pint

    Arm the laser!

    Interesting certainly, and an uneasy feeling, looks skeletal.

    Tho that could be the beer and my incomprehensible desire for ribs.

    it is still Friday right?

    1. stucs201

      Re: Arm the laser!

      There is nothing incomprehensible about a desire for ribs (preferably with BBQ sauce)

      1. Paul Crawford Silver badge

        Re: preferably with BBQ sauce

        Or baby oil...

  4. Anomalous Cowturd
    Mushroom

    Looks like a baby dinosaur to me...

    One of those cute little ones.

    No wait, there's hundreds of them... Aaarrggghhh...

    It's the only way to be sure.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Looks like a baby dinosaur to me...

      Yes, some sort of cross between a small lizard and a hammerhead shark.

      1. SweDe

        Re: Looks like a baby dinosaur to me...

        Nope... It's the Martian version of the GEICO gecko :)

  5. Dennis Wilson
    Facepalm

    Health And Safety Issue

    In 300 years some stupid git is going to end up breaking his toe on that.

    1. Proud Father
      Happy

      Re: Health And Safety Issue

      OMG you owe me a new keyboard!

    2. Pet Peeve
      Pint

      Re: Health And Safety Issue

      It's the simple jokes like that that'll catch you unawares and make you spit out your drink. Bravo.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Looks like a knapped piece of flint or obsidian to me.

    1. Psyx
      Boffin

      Looks like a twisted bit of metal to me, as though it was a vein in a rock and the surrounding rock has been eroded by dust, which has kept the finish on the metal looking bright and nickel-like.

      Which is kinda cool when you think how long the thing must have been sat there for that to happen.

      And I for one welcome our bent metal overlords....

  7. stucs201

    Hopefully they go back for a proper look.

    Not much of a backtrack, go and dig it up.

  8. MrT

    It's a tap...

    ...couple of quick twists and it'll unlock a rich Martian atmosphere from behind what is clearly a door that, over time has become covered by rock.

    1. LaeMing
      Go

      Re: It's a tap...

      Yes, I thought it looked suspiciously like a brass garden tap too. Probably why there is no water on Mars any more - the sprinkler was left off.

    2. Free Maps?

      Re: It's a tap...

      Yes - darn it, I thought I had spotted it first!

      1. breakfast Silver badge
        Happy

        Re: It's a tap...

        Actually Admiral Ackbar spotted it first.

  9. Allan George Dyer
    Alien

    Wait for...

    a martian emailing NASA, "thanks for finding my keys"

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Up

    New "element"?

    Doesn't this look like something that should be found in abundance, but apparently it is not. To me something like this would almost always be found in a scatter plot type of pattern, but just 1? It looks all too settled in to be any debris from anything we have passed up in space in the last 100 years, but it does look like it is just a shard. No aliens :-(

    Out of curiosity, what is the protocol for giving a go ahead on using the bot's laser? If it fired upon something like this, how do you rule out an explosive ending?

    1. DJO Silver badge
      Facepalm

      Re: New "element"?

      how do you rule out an explosive ending

      With no free Oxygen*, quite easily.

      *Or any suitable reagent.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: New "element"?

      "Out of curiosity, what is the protocol for giving a go ahead on using the bot's laser?"

      ...

      "Out of curiosity"

      I see what you did there.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Holmes

    Periscope.

    Anyone can see it's a Martian periscope. They're watching us from underground. They've probably already perfected the craft of motoring their submarines through solid rock, like we do through water.

    1. robin48gx
      Mushroom

      Re: Periscope.

      http://www.marspapers.org/papers/Mole_1999.pdf

      This scientific paper shows us how to deal with it.

    2. Minophis
      Thumb Up

      Re: Periscope.

      'motoring their submarines through solid rock'

      So in Jamie and the Magic Torch Mr Boo was actually an ancient martian submarine commander.

  12. zemerick
    Go

    Original Image

    Here is the original image showing the object:

    http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl-raw-images/msss/00173/mcam/0173MR0926020000E1_DXXX.jpg

    1. jonfr
      WTF?

      Re: Original Image

      Thanks for the image. I have no idea what this is. But it doesn't look natural in formation. Based on nearby rocks in this area.

      Maybe this is alien made. But the sample would be needed go to Earth for confirmation on such matter. Guessing is useless I think in this case.

      1. Psyx
        Pint

        Re: Original Image

        "I have no idea what this is.... it doesn't look natural in formation.... Maybe this is alien made....But the sample would be needed go to Earth for confirmation on such matter."

        Well, if someone with no qualifications in xeno-geology thinks it's worth launching another multi-billion dollar mission to bring it back because they think it might be made by aliens, that's good enough for me, and should be good enough for NASA, too.

        "Guessing is useless I think in this case."

        Yeah, where's a multi-ton robot tank, dripping with analysis tools, lasers and cameras when you need one, huh? That'd be dead handy right now!

    2. jubtastic1
      Boffin

      Re: Original Image

      I have a geology A level, it's been a few years but I'm pretty sure that's a rock wang.

    3. Pet Peeve
      Facepalm

      Re: Original Image

      Nice! Immediatly yoinked to my hard drive as the desktop background for my second monitor.

      I guess I was wrong about there being a drop behind it, so it's probably not a large piece of wreckage from a probe. On the other hand, that object to its right is pretty darn weird too. I'm sure it's pareidolia, but it looks like a metal rabbit to me.

    4. Kingston Black
      Alien

      Re: Original Image

      Zoom in and you'll see it's nothing more exciting than a pair of sunglasses...

    5. harmjschoonhoven
      Meh

      Re: Original Image

      http://curiosityrover.com/imgpoint.php?name=0173MR0926020000E1_DXXX shows that the image covers the path taken by Curiosity.

      The object seems to be something the rover 'lost', deliberately or otherwise.

      1. Vladimir Plouzhnikov

        Re: Original Image

        "the image covers the path taken by Curiosity."

        The old track was some 65 meters away from the rover's position when the photo was taken.

        The camera elevation was -8.85deg, so unless the mast is 10m tall the spot covered by the photo is much closer to the rover than the old track (something between 10 and 20m away, depending on how high the mast is).

        Does anyone know if NASA has released a better resolution picture of the same spot from the left camera as well?

        The one I've found so far is 500something by 400something. I've made a stereopair anyway and it clearly shows something sticking out of the rock, but because of the poor resolution you can't see what it is.

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