Google has added another body to its planetary roster with the launch of Google Mars - an extraterrestrial resource which allows punters to have a shufti at probe landing sites, mountains, plains and canyons, among other exciting features.

Rather disturbingly, though, the surface of the Red Planet is rendered by default as a "shaded relief map colour-coded by altitude", which actually resembles the output of one of those 1960s oil wheel projectors or, might we suggest, the output of a standard 100-watt bulb when viewed on LSD*.

Mercifully, you can select visible and infrared views, and clicking on a chosen feature links to a nice downloadable detail view with background blurb - like this one of the splendidly-named Arsia Mons.

We're sure readers will have hours of fun with this new toy, tracking down evidence of ancient civilisations and corporate branding. Keep us posted. ®

Bootnote

*So we're told.

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