The space agency had some fun on its Flickr
account today after posting a photo of crater formations that seem to resemble the furry blue crumb hunter known as Cookie Monster. But there's a better explanation than that the Muppet gang comes from beyond Mars.
"But the superposition of younger craters on older craters (in this case two smaller craters upon the rim of an older crater) can result in landforms that appear to resemble more familiar shapes to human eyes," according to the commentary accompanying the photo. "More generally, the Law of Superposition allows scientists to determine which surface features pre- and postdate others, leading to a better understanding of the geological history of different regions of Mercury's surface."
Sesame Street also issued a statement today about whether it's him.
"We think so. Now that we think about it, maybe Mercury is Cookie Monster, or his distant cousin maybe (?), and it's circling the Sun in hopes of om nom noming some space cookies or something. Okay, maybe not. Anyway NASA, thanks for thinking of us."
So, no life found outside Earth yet. But extraterrestrial cookies may still someday be out of this world.
