## Schiaparelli's Mars Map

Giovanni Virginio Schiaparelli (1835 - 1910) was an Italian astronomer and science historian. In 1859-1860 he worked in Pulkovo Observatory and then worked for over forty years at Brera Observatory.

In his initial observations, he named the "seas" and "continents" of Mars. He observed a dense network of linear structures on the surface of Mars which he called "canali" in Italian, meaning "channels" but the term was mistranslated into English as "canals". While the term "canals" indicates an artificial construction, the term "channels" connotes that the observed features were natural configurations of the planetary surface. From the incorrect translation into the term "canals", various assumptions were made about life on Mars.

Recommended Links:

- History of Mars observation
- Martian canal

Text based on Wikipedia,
License: CC-by-SA 3.0
License of the map: Public Domain