Since the 1960s and ’70s, scientists have come to view Mars as something of a “dead planet.” As the first close-up images from orbit and the surface came in, previous speculation about canals, water and a Martian civilization were dispelled. Subsequent studies also revealed that the geological activity that created features like the Tharsis Mons region (especially Olympus Mons) and Valles…
Tag: Olympus
Images reveal where lava broke through the wall of a Martian crater and began filling it up
At a fundamental level, Mars is a volcanic planet. Its surface is home to the solar system’s largest extinct volcano, Olympus Mons, and another trio of well-known volcanoes at Tharsis Montes. And those are just the highlights: there are many other volcanoes on the surface. Though that volcanic activity ceased long ago, the planet’s surface tells the tale of a world…
What Mars Would Look Like If Its Surface Was Covered With Water
schwit1 writes: A new map shows what the red planet would look like if 71 percent of its surface area was covered with water — around the same proportion as Earth. The results are spectacular: it shows two distinct landmasses forming, each of which would seem to form continents. While the left side shows a dramatic, mountainous terrain that includes Olympus…
Is Mars still volcanically active? New study says maybe
Scientists studying the ancient Martian Tissint meteorite say they’ve found new evidence that Mars was volcanically active a few hundred million years ago … and may still be today. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/is-mars-still-volcanically-active-tissint-meteorite…