# NASA's Curiosity finds "hood ornament" **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 12, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128 "2013-02-12T23:14:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/1 "2013-02-12T23:14:09Z")
Look at [this picture!](http://news.yahoo.com/nasas-curiosity-rover-finds-weird-hood-ornament-mars-191351150.html) Now I’m as skeptical as the next guy, but that is not a natural looking rock formation! Its shiny and metallic-looking. It sticks OUT where any weathering or erosion would have flattened it out like the surrounding rocks. That cannot be natural. Personally, I think it may be the handle to an underground lair where the surviving Martians dwell. Any second now Curiosity is going to open that thing and a bunch of 5 eyed Martians are going to come waddling out blasting everything with lasers. Then we’ll get a message from NASA that the probe has experienced “unexpected technical difficulties” and we won’t get any more pictures until the Martian fleet is hovering over our cities ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/2 "2013-02-12T23:34:37Z")
Maybe it’s the tap to a giant underground keg. But only an unmanned probe there to enjoy it. What a waste. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/3 "2013-02-13T00:01:52Z")
Great. The ancient Martians used their future-vision scanners to see what was going to be happening on Earth in a few million years, saw the guy who buried a bunch of [Cadillacs](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Ranch) in the ground, decided to copy it and got it freakin’ backwards. No wonder they’re extinct. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/4 "2013-02-13T01:45:01Z")
Moving from IMHO to MPSIMS. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/5 "2013-02-13T01:59:10Z")
That’s not a hood ornament. It’s a mounting point for an illudium Q-36 explosive space modulator. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/6 "2013-02-13T02:02:12Z")
Mars has a boner! Mars has a boner! ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/7 "2013-02-13T02:07:39Z")
In all seriousness though, the atmosphere’s thin and a lot of stuff that would burn up in our atmosphere would make it to the surface on Mars. Given time and wind erosion I imagine some metallic parts of meteorites would become exposed. ETA: I see the article also states this and calls it “ventifacted” rocks. Although they don’t mention meteorites. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/8 "2013-02-13T04:52:01Z")
That’s no planet - it’s a space station! ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/9 "2013-02-13T06:00:25Z")
> [@Bumbershoot](#): > > Mars has a boner! Mars has a boner! Is that a wind eroded meteor or are you just happy to see me? ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/10 "2013-02-13T06:14:43Z")
It’s twoo, it’s TWOO! ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/11 "2013-02-13T11:50:17Z")
“Hey Veeenus…Oh VEEEnus…” ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/12 "2013-02-13T14:14:06Z")
Oh, where’s Richard Hoagland when you need a Mars photo blown up, analyzed, and turned into a cult? ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/13 "2013-02-13T14:26:13Z")
That’s where you grab to make the atmosphere machine start. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/14 "2013-02-13T21:50:42Z")
They should have named this thing something other than ‘Curiosity’. I’m getting sick of all the “Look at this interesting thing that we’re not going to investigate any further” ---
**Author:** ![Mann\_Slaughter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@Mann\_Slaughter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mann_Slaughter)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/15 "2013-02-13T23:17:48Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Look at [this picture!](http://news.yahoo.com/nasas-curiosity-rover-finds-weird-hood-ornament-mars-191351150.html) Now I’m as skeptical as the next guy, but that is not a natural looking rock formation! Its shiny and metallic-looking. It sticks OUT where any weathering or erosion would have flattened it out like the surrounding rocks. That cannot be natural. Personally, I think it may be the handle to an underground lair where the surviving Martians dwell. Any second now Curiosity is going to open that thing and **a bunch of 5 eyed Martians are going to come waddling out blasting everything with lasers. Then we’ll get a message from NASA that the probe has experienced “unexpected technical difficulties” and we won’t get any more pictures until the Martian fleet is hovering over our cities** I was thinking the same thing, but more like [THIS](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QoVkYuCiHsA): ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/16 "2013-02-13T23:24:43Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > In all seriousness though, the atmosphere’s thin and a lot of stuff that would burn up in our atmosphere would make it to the surface on Mars. Given time and wind erosion I imagine some metallic parts of meteorites would become exposed… It could even be a fragment of one of the Mars probes we sent out and lost. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2013, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/17 "2013-02-13T23:40:12Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > That’s not a hood ornament. It’s a mounting point for an illudium Q-36 explosive space modulator. Well spotted. I’d been wondering where I’d left that. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/18 "2013-02-14T19:21:06Z")
> [@WotNot](#): > > Well spotted. I’d been wondering where I’d left that. Pick up after yourself. We’re not your maids. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/19 "2013-02-14T19:29:51Z")
Crap, I was trying to hide that from you guys until tonight. Oh well, Happy Valentine’s Day. ---
**Author:** ![Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/intergalactic_gladiator/32/112_2.png) [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intergalactic_Gladiator)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2013, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128/20 "2013-02-14T21:44:20Z")
> [@Dendarii\_Dame](#): > > Pick up after yourself. We’re not your maids. I just cleaned up this mess! Can we keep it clean for… for ten minutes! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nasas-curiosity-finds-hood-ornament/650128.md?page=2)