Canyons on Mars are much larger than the Grand Canyon on Earth

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Canyons on Mars are much larger than the Grand Canyon on Earth
Mars defender
The Martian valley system could have been formed by the movement of the Martian tectonic plates | Photo: European Space Agency (ESA)

The defender From JM Marineris surface crossing Marsthe same way as a file Grand Canyon Arizona does it in Earthwith the difference that the latter is small compared to its Martian counterpart, as revealed by images Seas Express Orbiter.

How long are cannons on Mars?

According to a report from the European Space Agency (this isfor its acronym in English), the Mars defender Measures 4 thousand kilometers Long, 200 wide and up to 7 kilometers deep, which is the distance from the northernmost point of Norway to the southernmost point of Sicily.

“There’s another big difference between the two: While the Grand Canyon formed when the Colorado River eroded rocks, the Valles Marineris is thought to have formed by separating tectonic plates.”

European Space Agency

How is the system JM Marineris formed?

The defender Recently photographed Mars Express Orbiter It is characterized by the presence of two main trenches: Jose Chasma of 840 km and tithonium chasma 804 kilometers. The trenches are more than 4 miles deep in some places.

The fault zone was imaged by the orbiter’s high-resolution stereo camera on April 21, in what was the orbiter of spacecraft 23123. Mars. The probe captured true color photos of defendershows us what the structures would look like with the naked eye.

at the top of tithonium chasmaA patch of dark sand adds color contrast to the landscape in Mars. This sand may have come from the nearby volcanic area Tharsis.

What do the giant canyons of Mars look like?

Next to the dark sand dunes are light-colored hills. These “hills” are similar to mountains, reaching a height of more than 3 thousand meters. surfaces defender It has been severely eroded by strong winds MarsThis suggests that it is made of a weaker material than the surrounding rock.

Between the two hills is a series of small bulges. His investigations Mars Express Water-containing sulfate minerals are found in this area. This indicates that these bulges may have formed when the fluid that once filled the gap evaporated.

In the lower right part of the pile that we can see right through, parallel lines and piles of debris appear, indicating a recent landslide. This also appears as a large purple area on a topographic image of Mars defenderposted by this is.

Scientists theories indicate that the landslide of Mars was caused by the collapse of the valley wall tithonium chasmaand it probably occurred relatively recently because it hasn’t eroded much.

crooked earth Jose Chasma It is equally wonderful. When the tectonic plates broke apart, it appears to have caused the formation of irregular triangles of rock resembling a row of shark teeth. Over time, these rock formations collapsed and eroded.

Discoveries of the Mars Express Orbiter

Mars Express It has orbited Mars Since 2003, he has captured stunning views of the planet’s geological features from above. The satellite is also responsible for studying the atmosphere of Mars and mapping the mineral composition of the planet.

The orbiter didn’t just pick up Mars defender, but he also peered beneath the planet’s surface, thanks to his MARSIS instrument; These observations shed light on what lies below the south pole of Mars.

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