Is there life on Mars? We’re finally starting to wonder again | Seth Shostak

Nasa's discovery of water on the red planet are like Xs on a treasure map - and bring us a small step closer to discovering Martian life

The most interesting thing we wonder about Mars is this: does it house Martians? This week, some highly technical research touted during a Nasa press conference has given hope for an answer.

Mars is arguably more seductive than Mata Hari. For early astronomers, it was the only planet on which they could see surface features. More out of hope than reason, they compared these features to the topography of Earth. The two worlds were evidently similar, and few scientists doubted that the red planet was carpeted in biology.