There are numerous mysteries of the world that mankind is only on the verge of solving.

From Stonehenge to the Great Pyramids of Giza, historians as well as the public has a surplus of both logical and outrageous theories as to where these icons began.

One example of this is the Face on Mars.

The Face has become a symbol of its own and many believe there to be a correlation with alien life.

However, I, as a scientist, am certain that the Face is simply a natural landform rather than an alien creation due to my knowledge that NASA has taken multiple pictures of the formation and reached this conclusion, NASA has no logical reason to hide evidence if it were present, and because planet Earth has similar formations found in nature.

In 1976, a Mars Global surveyor or MGS image depicted a shocking sight for those down on Earth.

According to "Unmasking the Face on Mars", an article discussing the mysterious Face, "...it[Viking 1] spotted the shadowy likeness of a human face. An enormous head nearly two miles from end to end seemed to be staring back at the cameras from a region of the Red Planet called Cydonia."

After their initial reactions, the rational scientists arrived at the conclusion that the sight was in reality, "...just another Martian mesa".

They carried on to unveil the finding to the public who some of whom responded claiming the Face is certain proof of Martian life.

NASA has stood by their belief, taking numerous shots of the Face since the original spotting.

As recently as of April 8, 2001; newer photographs using the newest techonology have shown the Face for what it really is.

Jim Garvin, the chief scientist of the Mars Exploration Program, describes tthe intent saying, "We felt this was important to taxpayers.

We photographed the Face as soon as we could get a good shot at it.

The clarity of these recent pictures is much improved upon those shot by the 1976 Viking.

In fact Garvin again claims, So, if there were objects in this picture like airplanes on the ground or Egyptian-style pyramids or even small shacks, you could see what they were!

True scientists understand that in order to prove a theory valid, one must utilize multiple data collections rather than one outlier.

NASA has indeed done so in the case of the Face on Mars.

Another reason for believing what I do is the fact that NASA is a professional organization which of course seeks funding and a fair reputation as much as anyone else.

Although many conspiracy theorists claim "NASA would rather hide" evidence of life on Mars, this could not be farther from the truth.

According to the article Unmasking the Face on Mars, "...defenders of the NASA budget wish there was an ancient civilization on Mars."

This is completely logical as recently funding for NASA has only decreased, seemingly along with the public's interest in space exploration.

This being the case, why on Earth would it be sensible for NASA to attempt any sort of cover up regarding evidence of alien life such as the alleged Face on Mars?

Finally, to verify NASA's knowledge that the Face is just a natural landform, is the observation which no one can deny: our planet Earth is abundant in formations such as the Face.

In fact, the mesa which the Face really is, is fairly similar to those found on Earth.

These landforms are particularly common is the western region of North America.

In fact, Jim Garvin states, It reminds me most of Middle Butte in the Snake River Plain of Idaho.

Thats a lava dome that takes the form of an isolated mesa about the same height as the Face on Mars.

Although Mars and Earth differ is many ways, the two neighboring planets share similar land formations such as these.

The Face is but a specific example of this.

After examining NASA's numerous verification attempts through the means of photography, the fact that NASA has no known motive to hide the alleged "evidence", and observing our own planet and its characteristics, it is clear to see that the Face is indeed nothing more than a naturally-occuring landform.

Undeniably fascinating, the Face on Mars is similar to many other wonderous works of nature.

As humans, it is only natural to find these perplexing and interesting.

However, science should not be refuted by simple fascination.

Instead, science should be utilized as a tool to explain the source of these out-of-this-world discoveries.