Mapping Mars by Oliver Morton

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Mapping Mars by Oliver Morton

Pub: Fourth Estate 368 page hardback. Price: Ł18.99 (UK). ISBN: 1 84115 668 X

Check out website: www.4thestate.com

From the names and achievements of the first observers of Mars through to the present day ethical and moral arguments for and against terraforming the red planet, ‘Mapping Mars’ is a journey through just about everything that has been learnt - and written - about our planetary neighbour.

Mapping Mars by Oliver Morton It's a fascinating journey, covering a vast range of subjects. The glamour and magic of maps and mapping - the cartographic representations of places that really exist, even if we can't get to them - is dealt with almost lovingly.

There's a wealth of detail about the results of all the Mars missions - the Mars Global Surveyor, Mariner, Viking - all written to be easily understandable to the non-scientific layperson. There are discussions about the easiest/cheapest ways to send human beings to Mars - and why.

There are the experts' esoteric theories about the possibility of water and life on Mars laid out in a sympathetic and objective way, inviting the reader to consider the options, the plausibility of such things being present in that harsh environment.

It's full of succinct descriptions of meetings with the remarkable men and women who've brought the study of Mars to its current stage. It's crammed with easily digestible information about how that extraordinary phenomenon known as 'life' actually exists - on the surface of the Earth, deep within the ocean's depths, even inside rocks.

If such things can be, on Earth, why not elsewhere? The book is extremely well-researched, hugely detailed and the information presented in an amazingly accessible, user-friendly way. In the main calmly - I might almost say diplomatically - objective, ‘Mapping Mars’ still manages to portray the writer's love and knowledge of the subject in a very refreshing way. HOWEVER ... It meanders.

It seems to take a very long time getting to any of the numerous points it raises. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it can be a little annoying, especially if you have no map to guide you. And that's the main problem with the book. I hasten to add that the version I have is a proof copy and the final publication may have the maps and diagrams and illustrations it so desperately needs.

Because it's all very well describing the Martian landscape in great detail - but envisaging those details in one's mind from a piece of prose isn't something I can do. Maybe other people can and, if so, I'm very happy for them.

Me, I need pictures. I'd like cross-sections of the terrains - both Terran and Martian - that are talked about in the book.

I'd like some sort of graph illustrating how Martian history correlates to Terran history: talking about the Procellarian and Noachian and Hesperian periods of Mars' past is all very well, but I can't remember now which, if any, of Earth's prehistoric eras these equate to ... I'd like visual comparisons of Olympus Mons to Everest, of the Valles Marineris to the Grand Canyon - or to the Marianas Trench, if that's more appropriate; of Mars' atmosphere to Earth's.

Most of all I'd like a map of Mars.

You can't call a book ‘Mapping Mars’ and not include a map of the place.

Joules Taylor
http://www.wordwrights.co.uk

Addendum, Sept. 11th '02: I've now been advised that the book does in fact contain maps, which is good news! My thanks to Mr Morton for the information.

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