Scottish village to twin with Martian valley

A remote Scottish village is set to 'twin' with its namesake - a rocky valley 35 million miles away on Mars.

Residents of Glenelg, in the Scottish Highlands, were excited to learn that an area of the red planet had been named after their village.

Nasa's space rover Curiosity, currently probing Mars, is expected to arrive at the Martian Glenelg later this month, reports The Scotsman.

Villagers have now decided to host a celebration of its new cosmic links with a twinning ceremony.

Glenelg has been named partly because it is a palindrome, a word which reads the same forwards as backwards, as Curiosity will visit it on both the outward and inward legs of its journey.

Also, features in the area being examined have been given names associated with Yellowknife, in northern Canada, where Glenelg is the name of a geological feature.

Residents in Scotland's Glenelg will host a Space, Stars and Mars event on 20 October to celebrate Curiosity's arrival at its namesake.

It includes a visit by Scottish-American astronaut Bonnie Dunbar, who will take part in a candlelit walk and a ceilidh.

Emma MacLean, Glenelg Community Development Trust officer, said: "This does not happen every day.

"We are hosting a party to mark the occasion and plan to have Bonnie Dunbar unveil an astronomical-themed sign for our community saying: 'Twinned with Mars'."