Why Martian Canals Still Matter

A century ago, many thought Mars was scored by a canal system constructed by an advanced civilization - an idea championed by astronomer Percival Lowell. Why? How did an astronomer come to this conclusion? Today we explore the canal phenomenon and discuss why it's a crucial allegory from history - pertinent now more than ever. Written & presented by Prof David Kipping. You can support our research program and the Cool Worlds Lab at Columbia University: https://www.coolworldslab.com/support Get Stash here! https://teespring.com/stores/cool-wor... Thank-you to our supporters L. Sanborn, K. Clark, T. Widdowson, D. Smith, S. Hackley, M. Sloan, P. Herman, C. Bottaccini, D. Daughaday, S. Fincher, J. Kindred, A. Jones, J. Allen, S. Baldwin, S. Brownlee, D. Denholm, G. Fulton, S. Griffiths, P. Halloran, J. Jurcevic, N. Kildal, V. Kremer, M. Lijoi, S. Loftin, A. Maslyanchuk, B. Matson, O. Mcintyre, L. Mitchell, A. Pelletier, B. Robinson, Z. Star, L. Steely, E. West, B. York, T. Zanjonc, P. Gowd, S. Kelsey, C. Wolfred, E. Dessoi, F. Naeem, F. Rebolledo, H. Laging, T. Leger, L. Skov, E. Wilson, I. Baskerville, J. Bassnett, J. Shackleford, I. Johnstone, G. Suter, I. Hopcraft, P. Akrill-Misso, W. Robertson, G. Ingham, D. Van Hecke, J. Pilloff, C. Stouffer, G. Benson, A. de Vaal, J. Wenzel, M. Elliot, M. Wallstab, B. Thomson, B. Daniluk, B. Bowen, D. Jacobson, G. Coogan, J. Patrick-Saunders, J. Bushong, M. O'Donnell, M. Forbes, P. Conroy, R. Clifton, S. Vystoropskyi, S. Carr, T. Laird, S. Lee, T. Tschopp, Z. Danielson, Z. Turner, E. Fernandes, E. Vinci, L. Holc, S. Grant, C. Butler, M. Peraic, C. Fitzgerald, B. Meraz, R. Ybarra, V. Alexandrov, R. Sinai, L. Macchia, C. Souter, M. Gillette, J. Rockett, T. Jeffcoat, D. Roos, D. Poole, G. Fuhrmann, H. Jensen, J. Flynn, L. Chambers, M. Archer & A. Bradaric. ::References:: ► Lowell, P., 1895, "Mars", Houghton, Mifflin and Co., MA ► Lowell, P., 1906, "Mars and Its Canals", The Macmillian Company, NY ► Lowell, P., 1908, "Mars As the Abode of Life", The Macmillian Company, NY ► Sheehan, W., 1997, "Giovanni Schiaparelli: Visions of a colour blind astronomer", JBAA, 107, 11: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/199... ► Lowell, A. L., 1935, "Biography of Percival Lowell", The Macmillian Company, NY ► Dollfus, A., 1909, "The first Pic du Midi photographs of Mars", l'Astronomie, 2009, 27: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/201... ► Sheehan, W., 1988, "Planets and Perception: Telescopic Views and Interpretations, 1609-1909", University of Arizona Press, AZ ► Rosenthal & Fode, 1963, "The effect of experimenter bias on the performance of the albino rat", Syst. Res., 8, 183: https://doi.org/10.1002/bs.3830080302 ► Evans & Maunder, 1903, "Experiments as to the actuality of the Canals observed on Mars", MNRAS, 63, 488: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/190... ► Van de Kamp, P., 1969, "Alternate dynamical analysis of Barnard's star", AJ, 74, 757: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/196... ► Gatewood & Eichhorn, 1973, "An unsuccessful search for a planetary companion of Barnard's star BD +4 3561", AJ, 78, 769: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/197... ► Bailes, Lyne, & Shemar, 1991, "A planet orbiting the neutron star PSR1829-10", Nature, 352, 311: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/199... ► Bailes, M., Lyne, A. & Shemar, S., 1991, "A planet orbiting the neutron star PSR1829-10", Nature, 352, 311: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/199... ► Wolszczan, A. & Frail, D., 1992, "A planetary system around the millisecond pulsar PSR1257 + 12", Nature, 355, 145: https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/199... ::Music:: Music licensed by SoundStripe.com (SS) [shorturl.at/ptBHI], or via Creative Commons (CC) Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/..., or with permission from the artist ► "A Fog Slowly Lifting" @ 0:00 & 22:34 (unreleased), "My Unbelief" @ 8:13 (https://app.soundstripe.com/songs/8128), "Fragmented" @ 18:35 (https://cutt.ly/Il9pUoQ), "Lost in Wandering" @ 28:02 (https://cutt.ly/Il9t6pP & https://cutt.ly/Ml9ywSl) are by Hill, with permission by the artist, see: https://cutt.ly/9l9yOPr, https://cutt.ly/Wl9yA5J & https://cutt.ly/5l9yFnc ► "Void" @ 1:40 and "Trace Correction" @ 30:16 are by Indive, licensed under a CC Attribution license: https://indive.bandcamp.com ► "The Sun is Scheduled to Come Out Tomorrow" @ 3:56, "Stories About the World That Once Was" @ 11:17, "Cylinder Five" @ 15:29 and "Cylinder Six" @ 26:48 are by Chris Zabriskie licensed under a CC Attribution license: http://chriszabriskie.com/ ► "Painted Deserts" @ 24:55 by Shimmer licensed via SS ::Chapters:: 0:00 Prologue 1:40 Perseverance 3:57 The Allure of Aliens 8:13 Lowellian Mars 15:29 Gestalt Reconfiguration 18:35 A-Priori 22:34 Stubborn Heart 26:48 Vigilance 30:16 Credits Thumbnail by Joe Keller/Daily Paintworks: www.pinterest.com/pin/376121006355076051/ #MartianCanals #AlienMirages #CoolWorlds