Giant Volcano ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’ on Mars

A gargantuan volcano has been bump in Mars ’ Tharsis tableland , making it the quaternary know volcano in the area . heavy eroded , the 29,600 - foot ( 9,022 - meter ) volcano has been hiding in plain sight , filch its gull into images of the Tharsis part but never really being regard . Until now .

The volcano ’s discovery was herald this week at the 55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in Texas . butt the snarl - like geology of Noctis Labyrinthus , the jumbo volcano has been provisionally named Noctis Mons . you may record the newspaper initially distinguish the discoveryhere . The volcano was found with data point from multiple Mars satellite , let in NASA ’s Viking satellite and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter , and ESA ’s Mars Express artificial satellite .

“ It ’s an ancient and long - lived volcano so profoundly eroded that you could hike , drive , or pilot through it to try out , sample , and appointment unlike parts of its interior to study Mars ’ evolution through time , ” Pascal Lee , a planetary scientist at the SETI Institute and the lead author of the young report , said in an instituterelease . “ It has also had a long history of heat interacting with water and sparkler , which ca-ca it a prime location for astrobiology and our search for signs of life .

Noctis Labyrinthus, whose eastern end hides a heavily eroded giant volcano.

Noctis Labyrinthus, whose eastern end hides a heavily eroded giant volcano.Image:NASA

The vent is on the western edge ofValles Marineris , a Brobdingnagian canyon systemon Mars that is 10 times longer , 20 time wider , and five times deep than the Grand Canyon . It was recognize “ hiding near Mars ’ equator in plain sight , ” according to thepress outlet . The team trust the vent is a carapace compose of layered lava , ice , and pyroclastic material . As faults and fractures formed in the volcano , lava rose , causing caloric wearing and , in the end , the prostration of belt of the volcano .

While the fresh discovered volcano just edges out Mount Everest ( 29,000 feet , or 8,839 metre ) in the height section , it ’s comfortably dwarfed by Mars ’ magnanimous volcano , Olympus Mons , which is the size of Arizona and an imposing 16 miles ( 25.75 klick ) in high spirits .

Last year , theteam get hold a relict glacierin the geologically immature area , a hopeful signboard for succeeding human habitation on a insensate , arid , generally inhospitable worldly concern . That finding was announced at last year ’s Lunar and Planetary Science conference . Upon further probe , “ we realise we were inside a huge and profoundly eroded vent , ” Lee say .

An image showing the location of the volcano, the relict glacier, and Mars’ other giant volcanoes.

An image showing the location of the volcano, the relict glacier, and Mars’ other giant volcanoes.Graphic:Background image: NASA Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) digital elevation model. Geologic interpretation & annotations by Pascal Lee and Sourabh Shubham 2024).)

“ Finally , with glacier ice likely still continue near the surface in a comparatively warm equatorial part on Mars , the position is looking very attractive for robotic and human exploration , ” he add .

If ice were keep near the Martian open , it would be a compelling venue for human dwelling house . How to produce food , water , and evenair on Marswill be vital job to solve if aspirations ofhuman exploration of other planets(and beyond ! ) is to occur .

Mars ’ volcanoes do n’t have Vesuvian outbursts — at least none that scientist have observed . But the planet is seismically active : in 2022 , the since - decommission InSight landerspotted likely signs of magmain seismic data .

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