|
|
|
|
The greatest volcano in the solar system, Mount Olympus (formerly Olympus Mons) looms below the spacecraft in this vertically-downward view of the Tarsus region. Mount Olympus is now believed to be dormant. Its summit stands clear of the appreciable Martian atmosphere, and, when active, it must have been nothing short of spectacular. It is a shield volcano, and has been compared, by volcanologists, to the shield volcanoes in Hawaii and the Line Islands in the Pacific Ocean on Earth. Its diameter is exceeds 300 miles; its summit height exceeds 17 miles. The vertical escarpments at the edge of the shield may be more than a mile in height.
Slide 11 of 20