Mars rover by Florent Lebrun

Picture of the Day 22/9/2015 - Rover in a Martian canyon by Canadian fantasy artist Florent Lebrun. More of his art here.

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Mars movie review - Red Planet (2000)

In the time we all are waiting for the upcoming sci-fi blockbuster The Martian I decided to watch again and review Red Planet (2000) - a sci-fi movie stared by Val Kilmer and Carrie-Anne Moss with quite similar plot (astronauts trying to survive and get off Mars) as the The Martian but undeservedly low scored by the most critics.

Story

In the first part of 21st century humans have totally polluted Earth and now are remotely trying to terraform Mars to make it a second home for humanity. For 20 years everything seems to be going according to the plan - temperatures on Mars has been raised and dispatched algae has been starting to cover more and more of the planet introducing oxygen in its atmosphere. Suddenly all the algae vanishes and there is no other way but to send a manned mission to find out - why this is happening.

It is year 2056 and a crew of 6 is being sent to Mars aboard the "Mars-1" in the first manned mission to Mars. When they reach the orbit of Mars their ship is struck by a particle burst from an unexpectedly powerful Solar flare. In result the electronics of Mars-1 is fried and fire is spreading through all the ship. 5 of 6 crew members eject the ship with landing module but the only female - ship's captain Bowman (Carrie-Anne Moss) - stays on Mars-1 to save the ship.

Mars outpost by Robert McCall

Picture of the Day 15/9/15 - "Another busy day on Mars" by classical space artist Robert McCall.

Images from The last days on Mars movie

The horror sci-fi thriller "The last days on Mars" (2013) by itself with its zombie virus nonsense is a complete crap, but visually it's quite attractive. Here are some of the best images from the movie (Open link in new tab to view in full resolution):

Mars lander over Valles Marineris by William Black

Picture of the Day 12/9/15 - A spacecraft entering Mars atmosphere over Valles Marineris by William Black.
More of his space concept art here.

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HD images from The Martian movie

The upcoming sci-fi movie "The Martian" is based on the novel by Andy Weir and is directed by Ridley Scott (known for Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Prometheus and countless other movies). The Martian will hit theaters mostly on early October 2015 (see full list of release dates here).

Plot in brief: "During a manned mission to Mars, astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring “the Martian” home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return."

More stuff from The Martian:  ►Trailers  ►Quotes  ►Concept art

Some of the best images from the various trailers of The Martian (Open link in new tab to view in full resolution):

Mars game review - Red Faction: Guerrilla

Red Faction: Guerrilla (2009) is an open world (sandbox) third-person shooter game set in the universe of Red Faction computer game series. It details the events between original Red Faction and Red Faction: Origins TV movie (followed by Red Faction: Armageddon computer game) on a terraformed Mars in 2125.

The most unique and compelling feature of this game is the ability to destroy almost everything in the game world. And you can do this in a lot of ways - by crushing with your powerful sledgehammer or any type of transport, by shooting, by blowing up a charge or a chemical cistern and so on.

Story

The story of Red Faction series is tied around the freedom fights of human colonists on Mars against an oppressive rule of Earth-based corporation - the plot line often used in Mars fiction. In the first game of the series - Red Faction set in 2075, 50 years before Guerrilla - Mars was liberated from the oppressive rule of Ultor corporation by revolutionary Martian miners (called "Red Faction") and its leader Parker (you can visit him as an old man next to his shack near a mohole in Badlands sector of Guerrilla). The allies of those fights - Earth Defense Force (EDF) - in last 50 years has become as ruthless as Ultor had been, for the interests of Earth's corporations pressing Martian society into forced labor. No wonder the Red Faction is revived. Unlike as in the original game where in open areas you should walk in a pressure suit, in Guerrilla the Mars is terraformed to the stage you can breath freely.

Mars base model by Kevin Atkins

Some of the pictures of the Mars base model by Kevin Atkins which was exhibited at National Space Society's International Space Development Conference in Chicago May, 2010 (click to view in full resolution):

Interspace Mars colony

Picture of the Day 31/8/15 - A drawing of a Mars colony from the website of "Interspace" - a Mars-themed attraction park in Titusville, Florida (near Kennedy Space Center) which will hopefully open in 2016 and house "the largest indoor Mars simulation in the world". It's one of the entertainment & education projects of 4Frontiers Corporation, a space commerce company focused on the settlement of Mars.

Terraformed Mars by Ville Ericsson

Picture of the Day 29/8/15 - A shuttle flying over terraformed Mars by Swedish concept artist Ville Ericsson. More of his fantasy art here.