H.G. Wells to get BBC treatment

The BBC is to broadcast an ambitious drama starring Michael Sheen as H.G. Wells. The BBC press release says of the 90 minute "A Life In Pictures", "Every word spoken by HG Wells in the film is his own, taken from his autobiography and other writings. The film mixes futuristic animation with drama to tell the story of this visionary writer." I'm particularly intrigued by the reference to animation. Does this mean we are going to get a fresh look at The War Of The Worlds with the correct period setting? Broadcast is scheduled for Winter 2006. Sally Hawkins (Fingersmith, Vera Drake, Twenty Thousand Streets Under the Sky) plays Wells'lover Rebecca West.

Clouds riding high on Mars

The European Space Agency's orbiting Mars Express spacecraft has discovered the highest clouds yet detected above the surface of a planet. The Earth has clouds that top out at about 52 miles, but clouds on Mars reach up to 62 miles. (100 kilometers) The clouds on Mars are thought to be made of Carbon Dioxide. There are no pictures available as the detection was made by the means of ultraviolet and infrared instruments on the orbiter. The orbiter looked at stars just before they were eclipsed by Mars and saw them dim, the telltale sign of clouds in the atmosphere. Says Franck Montmessin, a French researcher on the camera team, "If you wanted to see these clouds from the surface of Mars, you would probably have to wait until after sunset."

Has life on Mars been blown away?

Sushil Atreya, a University of Michigan professor in the Department of Atmospheric Oceanic and Space Sciences thinks so. His paper "Oxidant Enhancement in Martian Dust Devils and Storms: Implications for Life and Habitability" suggests that storms and dust devils would produce oxidants that would destroy any chance for life to get to grips on the surface, since any organic material would be scavenged efficiently by the surface oxidants. Of course this is not the end of the story by any means. This blog has reported numerous arguments for and against life on Mars, and until a human being gets there to conduct indepth exploration, I think we can still cling to the idea that Earth is not the only home to life in our solar system. For a detailed report on Professor Atreya's findings, go to spaceref.

Did Dark Horse Comics Rip Off Pendragon's WAR OF THE WORLDS?

No. But that's what Pendragon Pictures are alleging. Apparently there are numerous similarities between their 2005 film and the recently released Dark Horse comic, which also attempts a Victorian period reproduction of the story. I can't see it myself, though Pendragon are trying hard, having set up a website to promote the case and ask people to vote if they agree that they have been ripped off. Without a doubt, there are a couple of inadvertent matches, but consider, both versions are working from the same source material and there is only so many ways you can present the material. If you go through the website set up by Pendragon, the similarities become ever more tenuous and desperate as you scroll down the page. Lets take their assertion regarding a scene between the narrator and curate beneath the Martian Cylinder. Says Pendragon of their production: "Writer on the right, curate on the left as the house collapses”, while Dark Horse has "Writer on the right, curate on the left as the house collapses." Well wow! That clinches it. I'm reluctant to give this silly case the oxygen of publicity, but here's the link, if only so you can make your own judgement and if you agree with me, vote a big fat no.

Fantastic concept art for War Of The Worlds

One of the most frustrating things about the recent Spielberg version of The War Of The Worlds was the drought of background material on the making of the film. Even the DVD did little to redress this, with a bunch of fairly awful making of featurettes that were long on back patting, but short on content. We've not even had a making of book, which is frankly incredible, so kudos to Iceblink studios, one of the companies that did pre-production art for the film. They have posted a ton of fantastic images at their site. Access direct it here.

War Of Words between Cruise and Spielberg

You might recall that during the media campaign last year to promote a little film called The War Of The Worlds, there were signs that all was not well between Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise. The somewhat vocal Mr Cruise made a bit of an ass of himself on Opera declaring his love for Katie Holmes and then rumours surfaced (well, pretty much true by all accounts) that his beloved Church Of Scientology had a rather conspicuous presence on set, with a tented facility on hand to dispense wisdom to the cast and crew. But it appears that the New York Post has uncovered the truth. It was not his love for Holmes or the Scientologists on set, but Cruise's bizarre outbursts against the use of Ritalin to treat children, and specifically, the apparent outing of a Doctor known to Spielberg, who was subsequently picketed by Scientologists. The question is, did Cruise pass on the name?

Mapping the invasion

I've only been able to get this to work on the Firefox browser and its not the most pretty looking page I have ever seen, but its a great concept. Go to the gutenkarte website and select War Of The Worlds. Then you can browse a map of locations from the book. It would be great if they extended this to the Orson Welles broadcast set in New Jerseym but for those people (especially those outside the UK) who want to get a flavour of the locations used by H.G. Wells, this is a fantastic resource.

Falling short on Mars

NASA has been warned in a new report that it is falling short on its requirements for future Mars exploration, especially if it wants to translate future robotic missions into a manned attempt to visit the planet. The report from the National Research Council, which advises the government on science issues, was requested by NASA itself, so the findings will hopefully have weight with officials. Plans for the next decade get a broadly positive report, but the main problem for NASA is that billions of dollars have been stripped from their science budget in order to keep the Shuttle and International Space Station in operation. One of the biggest casualties has been a sample return mission, which is not likely to happen now until the early 2020's. Complex detailed robotic missions such as this are vital to improving our understanding of the planet, given that astronauts may need to spend a year on the surface.

Rough Guide to Mars

London's Royal Society is giving visitors a chance to fly over the surface of Mars this week in a groundbreaking demonstration of 3D landscaping tools. Using images of Mars from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) onboard the European Space Agency spacecraft ‘Mars Express’, people can peer into Volcanoes or plunge into a frozen see. "It will be great fun,like having your very own jetpack and whizzing around the Martian landscape without leaving your chair" says Dr Sanjeev Gupta, of Imperial Colleges Department of Earth Science and Engineering. Also on display will be a meteorite from Mars and a scale model of the ESA's Mars Express. Find more details of the exhibition at the Royal Society website.

Mars or Bust

"We won't find anywhere as nice as Earth unless we go to another star system," renowned professor Stephen Hawking said in a lecture this week, but in the short term he thinks Mars or the moon might make viable bolt-holes for the human race in the event of some disaster befalling the home world. I've long held the same view (not wanting to put myself on the same footing as Hawking), as it seems obvious that we are in a very precarious position on this little spinning rock of ours. Global warming, war or a meteor strike are all likely events that might trigger a mass extinction, so it's about time we started thinking seriously about spreading ourselves out a bit. If only a few thousand could survive in space, then their descendents might one-day reclaim a recovered Earth.

Euro Rover Science Package Revealed

A UK led team is developing a key science instrument for the 2011 ExoMars mission. The European built and financed probe will deliver a highly complex rover to the surface, equipped with a drill to delve deep beneath the Martian surface. Samples will then be transferred to the "Pasteur Laboratory" aboard the rover. One of the key devices in the lab will be the Life Marker Chip (LMC) which will test soil samples for specific molecules that can be associated with life. Essentially, the test is a "lock and key" procedure, in that certain molecules associated with life will only bind with other molecules of a particular shape. If one of the target molecules is present, it will bind to a prepared receptor in the experiment. The BBC has a detailed piece on the science of the mission.

War Of The Weird

It may be old news, but this must rate as one of the strangest interviews ever. Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise, bemused but pretty game, endure a bizarre interview in Japan. A truly compelling experience you can share here.

Top 30 landing sites decided

After a 3 day meeting at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, 120 scientists ranked the top 30 contenders for possible landing sites for the 2009 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission. The rover and landing technology has advanced recently, meaning that it is hoped to be able to land the rover within 20km of any targeted landing site. Some of the areas shortlisted are the Nili Fossae (interpreted as a complex of grabens and fractures related to the formation of the Isidis impact basin) which might have water deposited clays. Another potential site for the new rover is Candor Chasma, which rises three kilometers above surface levels.

Atlas V to carry Mars mission

NASA has announced that an Atlas V rocket will carry The Mars Science Laboratory when it lifts off in 2009. The contract requires that principal work for the Atlas V Centaur propellant tank will be performed at Lockheed Martin's facility in San Diego, while the primary work location for the Atlas V booster propellant tank's production will be done at Lockheed's facility in Waterton, Colorado.

Edgar Rice Burroughs comic

A new five issue comic book version of Edgar Rice Burroughs' A Princess Of Mars is due to launch in August of 2006. Published by IDW, who also created an excellent comic book adapation of The War Of The Worlds last year, the new series will be written by Dan Taylor with art by War Of The Worlds artist Ted McKeever.

Ready, steady, aim.

The next probe being readied for a flight to Mars is the Mars Science Laboratory, due for a launch in 2009. The probe should be a considerable improvement on the two rovers presently at work on Mars, but a landing site has yet to be decided. This weekend, engineers in Pasadena will be meeting for the first of many discussions to shortlist a selection of landing sites. Of course if there is life still clinging to Mars and assuming it is not widespread (as previous missions would seem to indicate), then hitting it is going to be a tall order. A number of areas are likely to fall under the microscope, including the vast Valles Marineris, though there is a balance to be made between interesting sites and the practicality of getting the lander down in one piece.

9-11 Mars

In one of the strangest stories to emerge from Mars, The Sun newspaper in the UK (a tabloid with a less than impeccable record for accuracy) is reporting that components of the Spirit and Opportunity rovers used salvaged materials from the 9-11 World Trade Centre wreckage in their construction. The engineer responsible is reported to be one Stephen Gorevan, an engineer at Honeybee Robotics. That certainly cements the Mars connection, as he and his team worked on the RAT (Rock Abrasion Tool) devices carried by the rovers. According to The Sun, "Engineers used metal left after the 9/11 attacks in building credit card-sized shields for the craft." Gorevan described it as a "quiet tribute."

European Mars rover lands on Tenerife

No, not a wrong turn, but the first tests of the rover destined to land on Mars in 2011. Tenerife serves as a reasonable facsimile of the Martian surface and for the last week, a prototype of the rover has been put through its paces. If all goes well, the £400m ExoMars project will land a six wheeled 40 kg rover which includes in its paylod a lightweight drilling system, a sampling and handling device, and a set of scientific instruments to search for signs of past or present life. In the first weeks of testing, the rover has proven it is generally sound, and despite some technical glitches, has sucessfully negotiated the rocks of the El Teide volcano. The BBC has a full report and video of the rover in action.

Birds eye view of Mars

NASA have an excellent website set up to promote the incredibly innovative ARES mission to Mars. Standing for "Aerial Regional-scale Environmental Survey", the ARES is an unmanned aircraft capable of travelling upward of 800 km once delivered to the planet. It's a beautiful looking aircraft, and while it is still only on the drawing board, one can only hope that the mission gets a chance to fly. The site has a wealth of material and some fantastic animations and mockups of the craft. Check it out at the ARES homepage.

Nanedi Valles valley raises questions

A new set of images, taken by the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on board ESA's Mars Express spacecraft, show the 800-kilometre valley long Nanedi Valles valley system. This steep-sided feature may have been formed in part by free-flowing water, but this is open to debate. Some researchers suggest the impressive feature may have been caused by sapping (erosion caused by ground-water outflow), while others suggest that flow of liquid beneath an ice cover or collapse of the surface in association with liquid flow is responsible for the valley's formation.