Scratch that. This is a pyramid photographed on Mars by the Curiosity rover, coincidentally 8 years to the day after Opportunity spotted the Egyptian sarcophagus elsewhere on the planet. It certainly appears to be the same shape as something from Giza, if a little blurry, but sceptics had other ideas when ufologists started getting excited about the possibility of Martian buildings. For starters, the object in the image is only a few inches tall. If that's the only experience the Martians have in pyramid building, they certainly managed to up their game when they visited Earth and helped us build one that clocks in at 450 feet. Of course, size isn't everything and there's no reason to discount something as being extraterrestrial simply because it doesn't tower over its surroundings. However, the nail in the coffin is that a wider shot of this landscape reveals an area absolutely littered with rubble and scree. The pyramid becomes a needle in a haystack of very similar boulders with sharp edges, pointy corners and flat faces. It becomes immediately apparent that the pyramid is just one of hundreds or thousands of similar rocks in the area but just happened to have a little more symmetry than its neighbours. Sadly, that's not quite evidence of an intelligent builder.
Peter Austin initially joined WhatCulture as an occasional contributor to our Film, Gaming and Science sections, but made the mistake of telling us that he'd been making videos in his bedroom for over a decade. Since then he's been a vital member of our YouTube team and routinely sets the standard for smart-casual wear in the office.
