(TOMS RIVER, NJ) -- Mysterious Mars is an endless source of fascination and imagination. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Curator Matthew Shindell’s For the Love of Mars surveys the Red Planet's place in folklore and in the future of space travel. He'll take you there during his Ocean County Library Virtual Author Talk on Monday, June 3, 2024 at 2:00pm.

Matthew Shindell, Ph.D., oversees the Museum’s artifacts related to study of Earth and the solar system and co-hosts its AirSpace podcasts.

For the Love of Mars, available at the Ocean County Library, is the newest of a half-dozen science-inspired works that he has written, co-authored, or edited.

During the voyage through time, Matt will familiarize you with artists and writers who have taken followers on their own imaginative trips into space.

Please register at https://libraryc.org/theoceancountylibrary for this free virtual program, to view the upcoming schedule, and to view previous talks. Registrants will receive links to the program by email and may submit questions for the author when signing up.

Matt will introduce you to historical figures from all over the world whose curiosity about Mars bridged fact and fantasy, including:

* Mayan astrologer-priests who factored Mars into calendars and religious rites.

* Babylonian star-gazers who saw it as a source of omens.

* Scientific Revolution leaders who wrestled with the concept of Mars as a world.

* Victorian-era astronomers who sought signs of intelligent life.

* 20th- and 21st-century scientists who introduced technology to the planet.

Keep up with Library programs and events at www.theoceancountylibrary.org, and on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, Spotify, and Pinterest.