There is a Scottish tartan designed for Mars exploration. That’s right, a Martian Tartan.
The tartan was designed by Geoffrey (Tailor) Highland Crafts on behalf of Charles Cockell, astrobiology professor at Edinburgh University.
Here’s how the Scottish Registrar of Tartans describes it:
Designed on behalf of Charles Cockell, Professor of Astrobiology, Edinburgh University, this tartan is intended to be worn during Mars science, exploration and outreach activities. Colours: the red background depicts the surface of Mars, the Red Planet; blue depicts the water-rich past of Mars and the presence of water, mainly as ice, on the planet today; the four green lines represent Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, the presence of habitable conditions on the planet and the possible future presence of life in the form of human settlement; the thick white line represents the Martian poles, visible from the Earth, a conspicuous and important feature of the planet and its long-term climatic cycles.
Feast your eyes:
The martian tartan
The closest we’ve come so far to tartan-wearing astronauts is the lovely Mike Seibert (Mars rover driver), below.
Is Elon Musk buying into Tartan? Well, in this tweet, he suggests a light tartan for the P100D Ludicrous.
Plaid is reserved for the next-gen roadster.
