Life on Mars

Buzz Aldrin says we will colonize Mars within 25 years. Mars One is recruiting candidates for one-way missions to the red planet, scheduled to start in 2026. Last year, millions were enthralled by fictional astronaut Mark Watney's not-nearly-as-improbable-as-you-may-think Mars survival story in The Martian. With recent discoveries of water there, these predictions and fantasies seem like more of a reality than ever before. Will we see the first humans on Mars in our lifetimes? What does all this Mars chatter really mean? Join The Franklin Institute's Chief Astronomer Derrick Pitts for a series of fast-paced and engaging flash talks exploring the topic of the mysterious red planet, what we know, and what we may find in the future.