Olympus Mons (Latin for "Mount Olympus") is the tallest known volcano and mountain in the Solar System and was formed during the Amazonian epoch. It is located on the planet Mars at approximately 18°N 133°W / 18, -133. It is three times as tall as Mount Everest. Since the late 19th century — well before space probes confirmed its identity as a mountain — Olympus Mons was known to astronomers as the albedo feature, Nix Olympica ("Snows of Olympus"...
more
Olympus Mons (Latin for "Mount Olympus") is the tallest known volcano and mountain in the Solar System and was formed during the Amazonian epoch. It is located on the planet Mars at approximately 18°N 133°W / 18, -133. It is three times as tall as Mount Everest. Since the late 19th century — well before space probes confirmed its identity as a mountain — Olympus Mons was known to astronomers as the albedo feature, Nix Olympica ("Snows of Olympus"), although its mountainous nature was suspected.
The central edifice stands 27 kilometers (around 16.7 miles/approx. 88,600 ft) high above the mean surface level of Mars (about three times the elevation of Mount Everest above sea level and 2.6 times the height of Mauna Kea above its base). It is 550 km (342 miles) in width, flanked by steep cliffs, and has a caldera complex that is 85 km (53 miles) long, 60 km (37 miles) wide, and up to 3 km (1.8 miles) deep with six overlapping pit craters. Its outer edge is defined by an escarpment up to 6...
less
