Mars might be a barren desert now, but alien hunters claim it was once a lush forest.

And they say they have the proof.

To the uninitiated, the photo above appears to show a column of Martian rock, but according to Paranormal Crucible, it’s likely a tree trunk:

“This object definitely looks out of place and in my opinion could be the petrified remnants of a Martian tree.

“Object is around 3 feet in height, and with numerous discoveries of plant and animal life on mars, it would be logical to assume, that a variety of tree either existed, or still exists on this enigmatic planet.”

Sadly, Paranormal Crucible doesn’t explain why NASA, which has spent $2.5bn on its Mars Curiosity Rover, isn’t investigating the possibility that trees existed on the Red Planet.

It’s not the first time the channel claims to have found evidence of alien life on Mars. In the past, it has spotted what it says are pyramids, tiny aliens and even humanoid figures in footage relayed by Curiosity.

NASA, meanwhile, is still searching for evidence that Mars might have once hosted microbial life.

Curiosity rover captures photos of a Martian mountain

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