In hopes of proving once and for all that that Cydonia Face was nothing more than a pile of rocks, the ESA team released a digitally created perspective view of the humanoid side of the Cydonia Face that promotes an unexpected peak.  This large “knob” or “horn” formation attached to the forehead of the Face provides a distorted impression of the formation that was designed to support mainstream claims that the formation is nothing more than a knobby faced mesa (Figure 1).

   With the random, chin to forehead, orientation of the Face and the prominent “knob” feature protruding up out of the forehead - the new image is so difficult to perceive, that even Meta Research member Dr. Tom Van Flandern admitted that he could not tell which end was up and was unable to make heads or tails of its features when he first saw it.2  Right out of the box, it was clear that this odd presentation was not very user friendly.

   The main problem with this newly fabricated perspective view of the Cydonia Face is that this extended peak feature, which has been called everything from a “knob” and a “spike” to a “horn” is absent in the entire data set of images capturing the Cydonia Face that has been previously released by NASA. 

   To begin, there is also no evidence of the “horn” feature seen in any of NASA’s 2003 Odyssey THEMIS images. A hornless forehead is most evident in an early morning sunrise view that shows no shadow of a “horn” stretching across the Face (Figure 2).

   If we examine the 3D perspective view of the Cydonia Face that was produced by NASA/MSSS in April 2001, with the aid of all the available laser altimeter elevation measurements by MOLA, again we find no vertical exaggeration of the “knob” feature on the forehead (Figure 3). Note that the Face is inverted, with the chin at the top and the forehead at the bottom of the image.

   Returning to the broad assortment of ESA images, lets take a look at the fourth perspective view of the Cydonia Face offered in the original release (Figure 4). Not only is this variant image more compatible with the known geology of the Face and most of the other digital-generated perspectives views of other Martian massifs in the area, it also shows no evidence of the “knob” feature that is created in the horned version promoted by ESA.

 

   Along with all the perspective views, the ESA team also photographed a full-faced image of the Cydonia Face that was release along with the “horned” version showing no such extended peak feature (Figure 5).  

 

   If you dig dipper within the collection of images released by the ESA team and search for additional images you’ll notice they also released an anaglyph (3-D) overhead view of the Face3 (Figure 6). Again this 3-D image shows no evidence of a horn.

 

Not only are these alternate images more compatible with the known geology of the Face and all other digital-generated perspectives views of the Cydonia Face and other Martian massifs, they also show no evidence of the extended peak feature that is created in the “horned” version that was so widely promoted by ESA on their web site and in the media. Moreover, all of the subsequent releases of the Cydonia Face presented by NASA, either full or partial views, clearly show no evidence of an extended peak feature on the western forehead (near the eye brow). All we can see in any of these images is a uniform, featureless area - indicating a relative flat forehead.

Interestingly, it appears that only with the assistance of Dr. Malin was the ESA team encouraged to distort the elevation of the forehead, thereby creating the odd “knob” feature. Notice the credits for the “horned” version of the Face also includes Dr. Malin.

So, why would the ESA team publish various images on their own site that contradict the highly publicized “horned” perspective view of the Cydonia Face and present the eastern feline side so correctly4?  And why would the ESA team go along with our good friend Dr. Malin and greatly exaggerate the elevation of the humanoid side of the Face in their greatly exaggerated “perspective view”?

Where is the scientific evidence to support this unsubstantiated horned view of the Face? Where is the data? Based on the known data set, the vertical perspective in this current digitally generated “perspective view” - the western side of the Face has been greatly exaggerated and distorted. And all its details, such as the eye, mouth and nose ornamentation has been smoothed over. All this new release does is propagandize the bias of the researchers at both Malin Space Science Systems and ESA in producing another Cat-box image.

This is truly pseudoscientific misinformation. It should also be noted that the ESA hasn’t posted any of its raw data supporting any of these “perspective views” of the Cydonia area. Therefore it is impossible to duplicate their work. Surely this is not good science and as you will soon see, the truth will prevail.

Following the “horn/peak” controversy, NASA released a colorized THEMIS composite image of the Cydonia area in January 2007 that included the Face and they also produced there own 3D perspective view of Face highlighting the forehead.5 As previously demonstrated in numerous NASA photos and ESA perspective views of the Face, the “horn” feature is again absent in this official THEMIS 3D image (Figure 7).

 

   Soon after the THEMIS release the Society for Planetary SETI Research (SPSR) posted a copy of a letter written by both Dr. Carlotto and Dr. Crater in March 2007 questioning the European Space Agency's misrepresentation of the topography of the Face on Mars. Then sometime in May the members of SPSR posted a reply letter they received from Dr. Gerhard Neukum of the ESA team about the so-called “horn” feature produced in the ESA Cydonia Face image. The article is titled: A Reply to “The Two Faces of ESA" by Prof. Dr Gerhard Neukum. Here is the key quote by Dr Gerhard Neukum:

“we are also not convinced that the “peak” exists in the way it appears in the second DTM.”6

   Well, that settles that, even Dr. Gerhard Neukum admits the “peak” was exaggerated. So, there is no horn/peak feature on the forehead after all.

   Due to the lack of any public response by Dr. Michael Malin to Dr. Neukum’s concession, The Cydonia Institute sent a Certified letter to Dr. Malin during October 2007. The letter alerted Dr. Malin to Dr. Neukum’s acknowledgement that the “peak” was admittedly an artificial creation. In our letter that included copies of both the original Society for Planetary SETI Research letter to Dr. Gerhard Neukum and his response, we asked Dr. Malin if he agreed with Dr. Neukum’s assessment. As of the date of this publication we have received no reply from Dr. Michael Malin.

Footnotes:

1. Portions of this analysis were posted on The Hidden Mission discussion form by Zip Monster (AKA George J. Haas) on September 24, 2006. The thread was titled “Mars Express Reveals they conceal Cydonia,” page 4. http://keithlaney.net/TheHiddenMissionForum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3502&start=57

2. Meta Research – Paradoxes Resolved Discussion Board – “ESA gives Cydonia a new perspective” TVF Posted – 22 Sep 2006:  16:24:56, web p.1.

3. Anaglyph overhead image of Cydonia Face formation composed of data recorded during orbit 3253 by the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HSRC) on ESA's Mars Express. http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM9WG8LURE_index_1.html#subhead6.

4. See ESA Confirms the Feline side of the Cydonia Face, George J. Haas.

5. Leonard David, High Erosion: Face on Mars Myth, Space.com Image of the Day, January 22, 2007. The perspective view was created by combining numerous frames taken at visible wavelengths by the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS).
 http://www.space.com/imageoftheday/image_of_day_070122.html