Colossal Arsia Mons volcano:
NASA’s 2001 Mars Odyssey orbiter recently delivered a stunning new picture from Mars, capturing the colossal Arsia Mons volcano piercing through a dense layer of early morning clouds.
- Arsia Mons is a massive shield volcano located in the Tharsis region of Mars.
- It is one of the largest volcanoes in the solar system, with a height of over 18 kilometers (11 miles) and a base diameter of more than 300 kilometers (190 miles), dwarfing Earth’s tallest volcano, Mauna Loa, which rises 6 miles (9 kilometers) above the seafloor.
- Arsia Mons is part of the Tharsis Montes, a group of three large shield volcanoes on Mars.
- It is the southernmost of the three Tharsis Montes volcanoes.
- The volcano has a caldera (summit crater) that is approximately 110 kilometers (68 miles) wide.
- Arsia Mons is believed to have been active for billions of years, with the most recent eruptions occurring within the past 2 million years.
- The flanks of Arsia Mons are covered in lava flows, channels, and other volcanic features, indicating a long and complex eruptive history.
- Arsia Mons is thought to have formed through the gradual accumulation of fluid basaltic lava flows, characteristic of shield volcano formation.
