Mars,
the "Red Planet", is named after the Roman god of war because it commonly appears
with a reddish tinge when viewed in our sky. It has always held a fascination
for those interested in the possibility of life on other planets. In 1895 a
professor of astronomy, Samual Leland Phelps, wrote in a book called World
Making that with a new 40 inch telescope being built by the University
of Chicago,
"It will be possible to see cities on Mars, to detect navies in [its] harbors, and the smoke of great manufacturing cities and towns... Is Mars inhabited? There can be little doubt of it ... conditions are all favorable for life, and life, too, of a high order. Is it possible to know this of a certainty? Certainly." (quoted in Feb., 1973 National Geographic)The adjacent image shows a Viking 2 image of Mars. There is no evidence for the things that Professor Leland thought we would see with an earth-based telescope, but Mars is still of great interest to us, not the least reason being that it may once have harbored conditions favorable to the evolution of life.
Information supplied by: http://csep10.phys.utk.edu