'Mars' Grand Canyon': ESA Satellite Captures Stunning Images Of Valles Marineris

A European Space Agency (ESA) satellite has captured stunning images of Mars' Valles Marineris, one of the largest canyons in the solar system.

Valles Marineris stretches across Mars just like the Grand Canyon, which runs across the United States. However, the latter, with a depth of more than a mile at its deepest point, will pale in comparison to the Mars canyon, which extends up to 4.3 miles into the depths of the martian surface.

"Valles Marineris is almost ten times longer, 20 times wider and five times deeper than the Grand Canyon," the ESA noted in a news release.

The canyon spans 2,500 miles across the Martian surface. To put it into perspective, it would stretch from the northern tip of Norway to the southern tip of Sicily if it was on Earth.

The images from Valles Marineris were captured by ESA's Mars Express satellite on April 22.

The images focus on two prominent features of the martian canyon – Ius Chasma and Tithonium Chasma. They are but a small part of the canyon system.

The chasms showcase distinct features such as landslides, dark sand dunes and mountain-size mounds. The dark color of the dunes may be due to sand from the nearby Tharsis volcanic region. The mounds next to them, measuring more than 10,000 feet in height, have been heavily eroded by the martian strong winds, indicating they are made of a more fragile material than the surrounding rock. Between the two mounds are a series of smaller bumps.

The difference between Valles Marineris and Grand Canyon, besides their size, was the way they were formed. The U.S. version was carved by the Colorado River, while the martian one was formed through the drifting apart of the tectonic plates, scientists believe.

"As tectonic plates pulled apart, they appear to have caused jagged triangles of rock to form that look like a row of shark teeth," ESA said. "Over time, these rock formations have collapsed and eroded."

Apart from its mighty size, Valles Marineris is of another interest to scientists – it provides evidence for the presence of ice water on Mars. In the smaller bumps, water-bearing sulfate minerals were discovered. This opens the door for future research.