Mars. Photographs from the NASA Archives

<p>Early astronomers, drawn to Mars''s fiery glow in the night sky, named the planet after their god of war. In the centuries since, Mars has captivated humankind as a source of endless speculation and a beacon of hope for its potential habitability. Through six decades of NASA¿s pioneering research missions, the mysteries of the red planet have been gradually uncovered, revealing a world not so unlike our own that likely once supported life.<br/><br/>See the earliest close-up images of Mars taken by the Mariner 4 spacecraft in 1965¿the first ever captured of another planet¿along with historical illustrations from an era when curiosity outpaced scientific progress. Science and art collide as NASA¿s later orbiter missions capture aerial views of ancient riverbeds, polar ice caps, dust storms, vast canyons, and towering volcanoes in an endlessly varied landscape. As they traverse Mars¿s rugged surface, NASA¿s rovers have operated as mechanical extensions of humankind for the past 25 ye