This oblique image looks north over central Valles Marineris and shows Ophir Chasma (top) and Candor Chasma (lower). The connected rift valleys and basins within Valles Marineris likely formed from a combination of tectonic faulting, groundwater escape, and erosional collapse. Image from: NASA/JPL-Caltech/US Geological Survey
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Massive Canyon on Mars Revealed by NASA

Nidhi Arora January 9, 2021

Have you heard about the Grand Canyon which is located in the state of Arizona, US? It is the world’s largest canyon. A canyon is a deep, narrow valley with steep sides and often has a river flowing through it.

The Grand Canyon is 277 miles (446 km) long and has a depth of over a mile (6,093 feet or 1,857 meters). Now NASA has released images of Valles Marineris, the largest canyon of our solar system. This canyon slices through the Martian equator and is about 2500 miles (4000 km) long and is 7 miles (11 km) deep compared to the surrounding plains. If this canyon was on Earth, it would reach from New York City to San Francisco, which is roughly the width of the United States.

This oblique image looks north over central Valles Marineris and shows Ophir Chasma (top) and Candor Chasma (lower). The connected rift valleys and basins within Valles Marineris likely formed from a combination of tectonic faulting, groundwater escape, and erosional collapse. Image from: NASA/JPL-Caltech/US Geological Survey
This oblique image looks north over central Valles Marineris and shows Ophir Chasma (top) and Candor Chasma (lower). The connected rift valleys and basins within Valles Marineris likely formed from a combination of tectonic faulting, groundwater escape, and erosional collapse.
Image from: NASA/JPL-Caltech/US Geological Survey