GOP Lawmaker Asks NASA If There Was A Long-Lost 'Civilization' On Mars

Ed Mazza

Someone’s been watching too much “Ancient Aliens.”

Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) took a moment during a committee meeting with NASA scientists on Tuesday to ask if there’s any evidence of long-lost civilizations on Mars in relatively recent history.

“You have indicated that Mars was totally different thousands of years ago,” he asked Ken Farley, project scientist for NASA’s Mars 2020 rover mission. “Is it possible that there was a civilization on Mars thousands of years ago?”

Farley, however, had not referred to any difference on Mars “thousands of years ago,” and set the record straight.

“So, the evidence is that Mars was different billions of years ago, not thousands of years ago,” he answered, in a clip posted online by Space.com.

“Billions, well, yes,” Rohrabacher interjected.

“There’s no evidence that I’m aware of,” Farley said.

“Would you rule that out? See, there’s some people, well, anyway,” Rohrabacher added.

“I would say that is extremely unlikely,” Farley concluded.

See the exchange above.

NASA says the Mars 2020 rover mission will attempt to address “high-priority science goals for Mars exploration,” including the search for life.

The mission overview states:

“The mission takes the next step by not only seeking signs of habitable conditions on Mars in the ancient past, but also searching for signs of past microbial life itself. The Mars 2020 rover introduces a drill that can collect core samples of the most promising rocks and soils and set them aside in a ‘cache’ on the surface of Mars.”

Mars 2020 is scheduled for launch in the summer of 2020, arriving on the red planet the following February. The mission is expect to last roughly one Martian year, or 687 days on Earth.

(h/t Los Angeles Times)

Also on HuffPost

Lizards!

Oh, NASA rover Curiosity, you make us so curious. Curious about images like this, which appear to show either camouflaged or fossilized lizards running around on Mars. A blogger caught this image, what do you think?
Oh, NASA rover Curiosity, you make us so curious. Curious about images like this, which appear to show either camouflaged or fossilized lizards running around on Mars. A blogger caught this image, what do you think?

Rats!

OK, this really does look like some sort of rodent. NASA's Mars rover Curiosity <a href="http://news.discovery.com/space/alien-life-exoplanets/mars-is-infested-with-pareidolia-rats-130529.htm" target="_blank">shot a photo of this little guy</a> earlier this year. But after a closer look, and a little common sense, it's probably a rock.

LIZARD RATS!

The rock rats and rock lizards have begun to breed. It is only a matter of time before they... wait... WAIT, WHAT IS THAT?!
The rock rats and rock lizards have begun to breed. It is only a matter of time before they... wait... WAIT, WHAT IS THAT?!

Computer, ENHANCE!

Oh no. It's too late. The rock rat lizards are already here.
Oh no. It's too late. The rock rat lizards are already here.

Beautiful Mars Ladies

The Internet has long been crazy about this photo, snapped by the NASA rover Spirit. She has a terrible choice in dress color though, doesn't she?
The Internet has long been crazy about this photo, snapped by the NASA rover Spirit. She has a terrible choice in dress color though, doesn't she?

Faces

The conspiracies go back to July 25, 1976, when this shot of the "Face on Mars" was taken by an orbiter. Do you believe yet?
The conspiracies go back to July 25, 1976, when this shot of the "Face on Mars" was taken by an orbiter. Do you believe yet?

Hearts

Awwww. These are real photos taken of Mars' surface. But were they designed by extraterrestrials who know the human concept of love? Only the ETs know.
Awwww. These are real photos taken of Mars' surface. But were they designed by extraterrestrials who know the human concept of love? Only the ETs know.

Alien Heads

If it's a skull, it appears to have several eye sockets, a nose, and an embarrassingly large forehead. If it's a rock, it's probably not even a rock. IT'S A ROCK... LOBSTER!
If it's a skull, it appears to have several eye sockets, a nose, and an embarrassingly large forehead. If it's a rock, it's probably not even a rock. IT'S A ROCK... LOBSTER!

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.