Space observers have spotted an odd object on Mars that looks like something Gandalf would carry.

The peculiar piece resembles a wizard’s staff with its crooked upright stance.

It was seen by NASA’s Curiosity rover, which has been traveling across the Red Planet for almost a decade now.

Fortunately, experts think they know what it is — and it’s a lot less magical than you might hope.

According to the SETI Institute, it is simply a piece of rock.

And they have an explanation for the strange shape too.

“The spikes are most likely the cemented fillings of ancient fractures in a sedimentary rock,” the research group said.

“The rest of the rock was made of softer material and was eroded away.”

However, that doesn’t mean it’s not significant.

Sedimentary rocks often contain fossils among their layers.

This means the object we see here may well hide secrets about past living things on Mars.

It’s not the first time strange things have been noticed on the Red Planet.

Space sleuths couldn’t believe their eyes last month when a secret doorway was uncovered among the rocks.

There was also a weird object that resembled a bowling pin.

This story originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced here with permission.