As Mars’ polar ice caps warm up, sublimated CO2 gas explodes out in tall geysers, forming spider-like formations in their wake.The European Space Agency’s Trace Gas Orbiter captured these “spiders” with stunning clarity near a south polar region called Angustus Labyrinthus,

Dark formations with leg-like tendrils pop out in European Space Agency images of Mars. These eye-catching seasonal spiders aren't alive, though.

These spider-like patterns spotted on the Martian surface are not actual spiders. They are formed when carbon dioxide gas warms up in sunlight and erupts through the ice's surface. As a result, intricate and branched channels are carved in the Martian soil. The exposed darker material creates noticeable blotches against the lighter terrain.

David Bowie would love this! There are spiders from Mars—if you believe these new photos from an orbiting ESA spacecraft.

When you think of life on Mars, what do you imagine? Most people think of little green men or gray Martians. Well, a photo from ESA's Mars Express shows something far different.

The thought of a colony of giant spiders sprawled across the surface of Mars may sound like something out of a sci-fi thriller. But new satellite images released by the European Space Agency (ESA) paint an alarming picture of such a dystopian reality.

The European Space Agency’s Mars Express has snapped the telltale traces of ‘spiders’ scattered across the southern polar region of Mars. Rather than being actual spiders, these small, dark features form when spring sunshine falls on layers of carbon dioxide deposited over the dark winter months.