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SCIENCE : Separating Fact From Fantasy About Mars : An astronomer at Gladwin Planetarium in Santa Barbara gives weekend programs about the fourth planet from the sun.

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Astronomy has gotten less sexist and more accurate since the space program began. And for the price of a Mars bar, locals can get a chance to get seriously spaced as the Gladwin Planetarium at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History offers a number of programs dealing with the fourth planet from the sun.

Astronomy is pretty easy to get into: All you have to do is look up, and people have been doing that for a long time, according to the weekend host and 20-year veteran of the facility, astronomer Ernest Underhay.

“Astronomy goes back to pre-history and the Ice Age, and is the oldest scientific achievement of our species. The first astronomer was probably the first human being to notice the movement of the Earth, the moon and the stars.”

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Mars, the closest planet to the Earth, got a bum rap long before either Wells (H.G.) or Welles (Orson) decided to scare everyone. When ancient astronomers saw Mars, and its distinctive reddish hue, they associated it with blood and war. Mars is, of course, named for the Roman god of war.

“Its two moons were named for horses that drew Mars’ chariot, Deimos and Phobos, panic and fear,” said Underhay.

“No fun, those two, but also no baseball strike up there, either. On Phobos, a decent pitcher could throw a ball into orbit, go inside, have breakfast, come back in an hour-and-a-half and hit his own pitch for a home run, then go back inside and renegotiate his contract before it comes back.”

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Mars is closer to the Earth than baseball is to ending its strike, and over the years, several similarities have been noted in the two planets. The Martian polar caps are readily distinguishable as the seasons change. They grow in winter and shrink in summer. Mars also has a number of canyons, stream beds, severe wind storms and what appears to be vegetation.

“Both are round; both have solid ground; both have thin atmospheres that you can see through into space,” said Underhay. “Mars also had active volcanoes; one has a base the size of the state of Arizona. You could drop all of Los Angeles or Orange County inside of it, which may not be such a bad idea.”

Nearly a score of years ago, NASA sent Viking hurtling toward the red planet to get the lowdown on our neighbor. But according to Underhay, it landed in the Martian version of Bakersfield.

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“Viking was initially launched in 1975, back when we had a real space program. But it took the slow route and 11 months to get to Mars,” he said. “There were two orbiters and two landers. The landers were supposed to transmit information for three months, but one of them kept going until 1982. They could’ve landed in more interesting places, but also more dangerous places and could’ve ended up being splattered in a canyon or in a volcano. So both of them landed in pretty boring places.”

As for life on Mars, Underhay says it doesn’t exist.

“Viking’s instruments looked for life, but there were no signs that life ever existed there. The stream beds are billions of years old, and water cannot now exist on Mars.

“The polar caps are dry ice. The vegetation turned out to be rock, and shadows of rock. During the winter, winds blow dust that covers the rocks, then during springtime, the wind blows the other way and uncovers the rocks. Yet, another Mars probe is scheduled for 1996.”

In addition to teaching about Mars, Underhay gives a brief overview of the winter night sky in Santa Barbara, what to look for and where to look. One of Underhay’s stories has to do with UFO sightings.

“Two-thirds of all UFO sightings are actually Venus,” he said. “During World War II, the British gunners often mistook Venus for an incoming German plane. They tried to shoot down Venus. They missed . . .”

There are a wide variety of astronomy shows scheduled throughout the spring, among them a planetarium show in Spanish; a study of African skies to commemorate Black History Month; and public viewing through the museum’s telescopes; information on the constellations; and all sorts of spacey stuff. Mars will be at its best on Feb. 10 and 11, and special shows are planned.

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Details

* WHAT: “The Red Planet in 1995.”

* WHEN: Saturdays, 12:30, 1:30, 2:30, 3:30 p.m.; Wednesday, 3:30 p.m.

* WHERE: Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta del Sol Road.

* HOW MUCH: 50 cents with museum admission.

* CALL: 682-4711 or the Observation Line at 682-3224.

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