Is it a rock? A trick of Martian light on the eye? Or Osama Bin Laden waving from his barren hideout 300 million miles from planet earth?
NASA scientists have been puzzled by the peculiarly life-like image which has been beamed back to earth by one of their two robot rovers that are currently trundling about the surface of the red planet, on the hunt for clues of life on Mars.
It will delight spacewatchers who have been so far disappointed by the lack of images of little green men captured by the twin vehicles on their four year mission.
The alien figure was pictured at the far left of one of the panoramic photographs taken by the exploration rover, Spirit, from the top of a low plateau in late 2007.
Article: Does this show there's life on Mars? - Times Online