A new image take from a satellite revolve Mars has bring out a spectacular canon in unprecedented detail . Known as Aganippe Fossa , the gnarly , scrape - alike ravine was first pick out by astronomers almost a century ago , yet can now be seen up near for the first time .
quantify or so 600 kilometre ( 373 miles ) from last to close , Aganippe Fossa is a colossal example of a graben , which is the name afford to ditch - like grooves with exorbitant walls on either side . For comparing , the Grand Canyon in the US is 446 klick ( 277 land mile ) long , although our planet ’s most extensive canyon - which is locatedunder Greenland ’s ice sheet- does stick the Martian rift , with a length of around 750 kilometers ( 460 miles ) .
The fresh image was catch by theEuropean Space Agency ’s ( ESA ) Mars Express , which has been orb the Red Planet since 2003 . It shew the kink , broken defile snake its way across the Tharsis region , which is home to some of Mars ' largest and most iconic vent .
This wider view shows the location of Aganippe Fossa in relation to the enormous Martian volcanoes Arsia Mons and Olympus Mons. Image credit: NASA/MGS/MOLA Science Team
The closest of these to Aganippe Fossa is Arsia Mons , which has a height of around nine kilometers ( 29,500 feet ) . Further Second Earl of Guilford lies the imposing build ofOlympus Mons , the tallest volcano in the solar organization with an altitude of about 25 kilometers ( 82,000 fundament ) .
harmonize to ESA , it ’s presently unreadable how Aganippe Fossa form , although it may have been created as magma from beneath Arsia Mons forced its way upwards , causing the Martian control surface to stretch and break millions of years ago .
As awesome as the canyon look in these picture , however , it ’s nowhere near as telling as Mars ’ farseeing ravine , theValles Marineris . unfold for an incredible 4,000 kilometers ( 2,500 miles ) along the major planet ’s equator , this imposing turning point is the largest canon in the full solar system .
