The 'Face on Mars' has since become a pop icon. Sign up for EXPRESS SCIENCE NEWS delivery formed by shadows giving the illusion of eyes, nose and mouth.' The authors reasoned it would be a good way to engage the public and attract attention to Mars. The caption noted a 'huge rock formation. Click here for a 2001 photo from Mars Global Surveyor that reveals the true appearance of the Face.ДЄ few days later NASA unveiled the image for all to see. Scientists figured it was just another Martian mesa, common enough around Cydonia, only this one had unusual shadows that made it look like an Egyptian Pharaoh.ДЄbove: A 1976 Viking 1 photograph of the Face on Mars. There must have been a degree of surprise among mission controllers back at the Jet Propulsion Lab when the face appeared on their monitors. An enormous head nearly two miles from end to end seemed to be staring back at the cameras from a region of the Red Planet called Cydonia. NASA's Viking 1 spacecraft was circling the planet, snapping photos of possible landing sites for its sister ship Viking 2, when it spotted the shadowy likeness of a human face. Twenty five years ago something funny happened around Mars.

Face of mars wiki