Mars and the Search for Life [Hardcover]

Elaine Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 6, 2008 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Despite the fondest desires of science fiction fans, everyone knows Mars isn't inhabited by little green men. In fact, Mars is a desolate, hostile world, with unbearably cold temperatures, no atmosphere to speak of, and violent dust storms. But could there ever have been life there, in some form? And if so, what happened to it? And could life exist there again one day? Maybe even human life? Elaine Scott takes readers on a journey through history and space and then into an exciting future as she explores the growing body of evidence that water---and therefore the potential for life---was present on Mars at one time. Even more titillating, the possibility of human habitation now hovers on the horizon, maybe within the next 30 years---an exciting prospect for young readers, some of whom may be among those first colonists.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 5–9—A well-researched examination of our fascinating relationship with the Red Planet, and of the possibility of life (intelligent or otherwise) existing (or having existed) in its stark, rugged landscapes. Beginning with Orson Wells's famous War of the Worlds radio broadcast on October 30, 1938, Scott's readable and informational text follows the history of our speculations, from Giovanni Schiaparelli and Percival Lowell's "canals" to the Mariner flybys, the Viking landers, and a busy stable of rovers. Deductions made from detailed photos and a variety of experiments conducted on the surface are discussed, as are the practical steps of choosing a landing site, calculating a window of opportunity for a successful launch, and the launch itself, not to mention the engineering feats of designing a launch vehicle, a spaceship, and a mechanism that will not only survive being dropped from space to an unforgiving surface, but one that will actually work after impact. Color photos, illustrations, and diagrams liberally dot the oversize pages, themselves colored like a Martian landscape-pale rusty orange fading to a gray-tinged "sky." Sidebars offer information on such topics as "Refracting vs. Reflecting," "Mars Time," and "Satellites Orbiting Mars." Teamed with such titles as the simpler, straightforward Mars (World Book, 2007) and Gloria Skurzynski's intriguing Are We Alone?: Scientists Search for Life in Space (National Geographic, 2004), this clearly written, carefully constructed book will shine like the Red Planet seen on a clear, moonless night.—Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY
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From Booklist

This simply designed, handsomely photographed book traces the history of earthlings' biggest crush, the planet Mars. Mars has always held a special place in our collective imaginations, with the term Martian becoming nearly synonymous with extraterrestrial life. Scott opens with an account of Orson Welles’ panic-inspiring radio performance of H. G. Wells’ The War of the Worlds, before moving into the real-life scientific inquiry into the possibility of life on Mars. Integral to life is water in liquid form, and the author does an admirable job of framing the question of whether or not there is or ever was water on Mars as the central argument around which much of the speculation and study of extraterrestrial life has revolved. Some readers may be inclined to skip the drier details of launches and spaceflight, but there won’t be many who aren’t fascinated by images and accounts of the rovers tooling around Mars taking pictures, or of the increasingly real possibility of manned exploration of the Red Planet. Grades 5-8. --Ian Chipman

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Clarion Books (October 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618766952
• ISBN-13: 978-0618766956
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #831,542 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Elaine Scott was born in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, the middle child of three born to her father, George J. Watts, Jr., a banker and his wife, Ethel, a homemaker. Her father's career took the family to Texas in 1952 and there, with the exception of a brief stint in Nigeria, Elaine Scott has remained. Her books have appeared on numerous "Best Books" lists and have won various awards including the American Institute of Physics Science Writing Award for Close Encounters With the Universe,and the Texas State Reading Association Literature Award for Young Children for When is a Planet Not a Planet? Her newest book, Space, Stars, and the Beginning of Time, will be published in January, 2011. She is now at work on Buried Alive! The Story of the Chilean Miners, to be published by Clarion in 2012.

Elaine and her husband, Parker, make their home in Houston, Texas. When she isn't busy writing (which is rarely) she enjoys reading (of course,)teaching adults, visiting schools, and traveling with her husband, Parker--especially to Kauai, Hawaii,--or to Dallas to visit with their daughters, Cindy and Susan and the most outstanding grandchild in the world, Jackson Scott Beasley.