This is the Mars I grew up with. There was a confidence that there was life up there. Mariner 4 put pay to all that. The pictures that came back seemed as though Mariner 4 had detoured to the Moon, or Mercury instead.Ray Bradbury in his "Martian Chronicles" hinted at Martians having been there, being there when the astronauts finally landed on the red planet. Ray's book brought back my boyish vision of Mars, rather than the "real" one, gradually revealed by Mariner 4 and the other Mariners. I also read other tales about Mars written by Captain W.E. Johns "Return To Mars". I can't remember much about the book itself. I'm almost reluctant to re-read it, in case it destroys my precious image of it, consisting of the rexine bound and lavishly coloured drawings I can just recall from it.
The black lines you see in my experimental colour pencil drawing, (to remind myself how I did it!), were once thought to be canals, built by intelligent Martians to irrigate their exceedingly arid planet. Imagine. Martians investing in a planet-wide irrigation system. How much money would that need?
Later, Viking 1 and 2 actually landing on surface of Mars! Wow! I am so honoured that I witnessed the Apollo 11 landing on the Moon.
Think about it. I witnessed humankind setting foot on to the surface of another world. And hopefully, I should still be alive when humankind land on Mars. These are events that no other generation will ever witness. Sure, we'll land on other planets of our solar system and later, of other stars.
I just hope we don't ever "know" to much.
