Tetrahedral Pyramid with Circular Depression at the Apex

Latitude	-5.02°
Longitude	147.51°

Old 'Hal Masursky site' for future Mars rover mission in north Memnonia

NASA Catalog:

http://ida.wr.usgs.gov/html/fha008/fha00898.html

Click on thumbnail images below to see a high-resolution photograph

	Viking Context Image	Viking Color Context Image
	Viking Context Image	Viking Color Context Image

Enhancements

Initially this feature appeared to be a monolith. Upon closer inspection, we think it isn't a monolith at all. The arguments about scale are persuasive, but even more so is the enlargement (below). The drawing on the left shows our current interpretation of this structure and that on the right shows our first monolith interpretation. Enlarged, it's pretty clear that it is a triangular hill (tetrahedral pyramid?) with a circular depression right on the peak obliterating the apex. Compare with a very similar shape elsewhere.

Additional commentary by Greg Stockton:

Wow. The enlargement really changed its appearance. You are correct to say it looks like a pyramid. It possesses the following features which support this argument: (1) flat sides which slope perfectly up to the point (2) the sides appear to have the same angle of slope (3) the baselines of the sides are each perfectly straight (4) the sloping sides adjoin each other in perfectly straight seams, which also happen to culminate in the apex.

Observers may well note that there is no apparent apex. There is a large hole/indentation in its place. It may be tempting to label this as a small volcano with a caldera. No way. The base of the entire mass would have to be round, or at least irregular in formation. The caldera would have to be more exactly centered. True, the indentation is at the top. But it is off center, and located impossibly close to the east slope. There is zero sign of lava flow.

Then why is there a hole at the top where the apex should be? Could it be an impact crater? Possible, but highly improbable. To make a round crater without collapsing at least one of the sides, the impacting body would have to vector in from directly above. I estimate the chances of this happening at 300 to 1, maybe higher. Considering that this blast ring is located at the apex of an apparently artificial artifact, I am driven to the conclusion that it was destroyed by missile. A powerful one, maybe a low yield nuclear weapon. Such a weapon would have penetrated the target to a certain depth before detonation. A blast from within the object would explain the concentric, perfectly round crater, as well as the condition of the slopes.

Mars has long been associated with war, and probably for a good reason. The D&M pyramid at Cydonia also appears to have been blasted apart through one of the sides. If Mars was once a thriving civilization, as some of us believe, would not catastrophic war loom as one possible explanation for its demise?

A cautious prediction: This was probably an arcology. Further enhancement of the cratered area may show a honeycombed appearance which would confirm this. Also, the small "hill" to the NNE may well prove to have a pyramidal form also.

Note: We should remember that this is not a 3-sided object. Its base constitutes the 4th side, making it a tetrahedron. This form is significant within Hoagland's hyperdimensional theory.