The Largest Known Canyon in the Solar System
The largest known canyon is not on Earth, it’s on Mars. Called Valles Marineris, this enormous canyon system stretches more than 4,000 km long, reaches 200–600 km wide, and plunges as deep as 10 km. That makes it about ten times longer and five times deeper than the Grand Canyon in the USA.
Located just south of Mars' equator, Valles Marineris was discovered in 1971 by the Mariner 9 space probe, after which it was named.
Unlike Earth’s canyons, which are mostly carved by flowing rivers, Valles Marineris is believed to have formed when Mars' crust cracked and pulled apart as the nearby Tharsis volcanic region cooled and shifted. Powerful Martian dust storms, with winds reaching up to 450 km/h, later helped erode and shape the landscape.
The system is made up of vast interconnected trenches, including Ius Chasma, Tithonium Chasma, and the deep Hebes Chasma. Recent research even suggests that water-rich materials, possibly ice may lie beneath parts of the canyon, especially in the Candor Chaos region.
With no rivers to reshape it and little erosion compared to Earth, this colossal scar across Mars has survived for millions of years, making it the largest canyon system in the entire Solar System.
The largest known canyon is not on Earth, it’s on Mars. Called Valles Marineris, this enormous canyon system stretches more than 4,000 km long, reaches 200–600 km wide, and plunges as deep as 10 km. That makes it about ten times longer and five times deeper than the Grand Canyon in the USA.
Located just south of Mars' equator, Valles Marineris was discovered in 1971 by the Mariner 9 space probe, after which it was named.
Unlike Earth’s canyons, which are mostly carved by flowing rivers, Valles Marineris is believed to have formed when Mars' crust cracked and pulled apart as the nearby Tharsis volcanic region cooled and shifted. Powerful Martian dust storms, with winds reaching up to 450 km/h, later helped erode and shape the landscape.
The system is made up of vast interconnected trenches, including Ius Chasma, Tithonium Chasma, and the deep Hebes Chasma. Recent research even suggests that water-rich materials, possibly ice may lie beneath parts of the canyon, especially in the Candor Chaos region.
With no rivers to reshape it and little erosion compared to Earth, this colossal scar across Mars has survived for millions of years, making it the largest canyon system in the entire Solar System.
The Largest Known Canyon in the Solar System
The largest known canyon is not on Earth, it’s on Mars. Called Valles Marineris, this enormous canyon system stretches more than 4,000 km long, reaches 200–600 km wide, and plunges as deep as 10 km. That makes it about ten times longer and five times deeper than the Grand Canyon in the USA.
Located just south of Mars' equator, Valles Marineris was discovered in 1971 by the Mariner 9 space probe, after which it was named.
Unlike Earth’s canyons, which are mostly carved by flowing rivers, Valles Marineris is believed to have formed when Mars' crust cracked and pulled apart as the nearby Tharsis volcanic region cooled and shifted. Powerful Martian dust storms, with winds reaching up to 450 km/h, later helped erode and shape the landscape.
The system is made up of vast interconnected trenches, including Ius Chasma, Tithonium Chasma, and the deep Hebes Chasma. Recent research even suggests that water-rich materials, possibly ice may lie beneath parts of the canyon, especially in the Candor Chaos region.
With no rivers to reshape it and little erosion compared to Earth, this colossal scar across Mars has survived for millions of years, making it the largest canyon system in the entire Solar System.
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