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1894年，一個商人在美國乾燥的亞利桑那州自資興建一所天文台，並開展他一生的天文事業。這名商人開始天文觀測不久，即向外界宣布他觀測到火星的「運河」，並揚言這是火星文明的確證。這人是羅威爾，終其一生，羅威爾並無實質的科學發現，但若談到探索火星生命，無人可忽視他對後人的啟發。他的天文台至今仍屬世界級的行星研究翹首。
除繪製火星的運河圖(圖)外，羅威爾還致力搜尋第9顆行星，他稱之為X行星。羅威爾於1916年離世，其搜尋第9行星的工作遂由天文台員工繼承。1930年，年輕的湯博使用該台的攝影儀發現冥王星。
Percival Lowell as an Astronomer
In 1894, a businessman built an observatory under the dry Arizona sky with his fortune. The man soon started sketching the surface features of Mars. In the same year, he publicly announced that he had discovered "canals" on Mars and they were created by inhabitants of Mars. This man is Percival Lowell. Though Lowell made no true scientific discovery, no other people was more responsible in creating the public interest in the search of life on Mars. The Lowell Observatory remains one of the most renowned observatories until today.
Lowell devoted his life to sketching Mars (see picture) and searching for the 9th planet, which was called as Planet X. After his death in 1916, his observatory staff continued the search. In 1930, Clyde Tombaugh discovered Pluto at Lowell Observatory. ■甄枝強 資深天文愛好者 圖片鳴謝：Percival Lowell
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