Valles Marineris | Gigantic valley of Mars

Telescope view of Valles Marineris

The terrestrial red planet Mars is the most attractive and researching plane for the astronomers. It surface features are very attractive and magnificent. Among the diversified surface feature, one of  most incredible diversity is the Valles Marineris. This valley stretches for nearly a quarter of the planet’s circumference.

close view of Valles Marineris

Valles Marineris which was discovered in 1971–72, is a system of canyons that runs along the Martian surface east of the Tharsis region of Mars. Valles Marineris rift system is one of the larger canyons of the Solar System, surpassed only by the rift valleys of Earth and (in length only) by Baltis Vallis on Venus.

close view of Valles Marineris

This gigantic valley is about 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) long and varies from 2.5 to 6 miles (4 to 10 kilometers) in depth. By comparison, Earth's largest canyon, the Grand Canyon in Arizona is only 277 miles (446 kilometers) long and 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) in depth.