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ESA records pits in the flank of the 2nd highest volcano on Mars, which is taller than Mount Everest. Details here

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The European Space Agency (ESA) has captured the pitted, fissured flank of Ascraeus Mons, the second highest volcano on the planet Mars. Report also claims that the height of Ascraeus Mons is twice as high as the highest mountain in the world, Mount Everest.

The images shared by ESA consist of observations from Mars Express’s High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC).

Ascraeus Mons is the northernmost and highest of three prominent volcanoes in the Tharsis region of Mars. The Tharsis region of the planet is a volcanic plateau in the western hemisphere of Mars.

Measured at 18 km high, Ascraeus Mons has a massive base diameter of 480 km, giving it a footprint roughly the size of Romania on Earth. With this height, it shows that the height of Ascraeus Mons is greater than that of Mount Everest, whose height as of March 2020 is 8,848.86 meters above sea level.

Ascraeus Mons is only surpassed in height by Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano not only on Mars but in the entire solar system, ESA says.

This image shows the region around the Martian volcanoes Ascraeus Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Arsia Mons. The area outlined by the larger white box indicates the area captured by ESA's Mars Express High Resolution Stereo Camera orbiting 24045 on 15 January 2023. The smaller white box shows the specific area highlighted by the new Mars Express images. (Image: NASA/MGS/MOLA Science Team)

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This image shows the region around the Martian volcanoes Ascraeus Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Arsia Mons. The area outlined by the larger white box indicates the area captured by ESA’s Mars Express High Resolution Stereo Camera orbiting 24045 on 15 January 2023. The smaller white box shows the specific area highlighted by the new Mars Express images. (Image: NASA/MGS/MOLA Science Team)

According to ESA, there is a dramatic elevation change from one side to the other, with the left (southern) side of the frame sitting about 10 km lower than the right (northern) side.

Deep, irregular fissures in the surface of Mars can be seen twisting toward the camera. (Image: NASA/MGS/MOLA Science Team)

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Deep, irregular fissures in the surface of Mars can be seen twisting toward the camera. (Image: NASA/MGS/MOLA Science Team)
This annotated image from ESA's Mars Express shows the southern flanks of Ascraeus Mons, the second highest volcano on Mars.

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This annotated image from ESA’s Mars Express shows the southern flanks of Ascraeus Mons, the second highest volcano on Mars.

In addition, numerous rippled lava flows lie on the right side of the frame. According to ESA, this wrinkled soil then encounters chains of “pit craters,” features where series of circular or near-circular depressions have combined and coalesced to form troughs.

The ESA further states that ‘Sinuous rilles’, small, meandering, rimless channels often found near the sides of volcanoes, are present on the ground to the left of the crater chains. Their formations are still unclear, but they could be streams of lava, ash, or water, or even a combination of the three.

The Mars Express has been orbiting the Red Planet since 2003, imaging the surface of Mars, mapping its minerals, identifying the composition and circulation of its tenuous atmosphere, exploring beneath its crust and exploring how different phenomena interact in the vicinity of Mars.

Joanna Swanson

Joanna Swanson is Europe correspondent at the Thomson Reuters Foundation based in Brussels covering politics, culture, business, climate change, society, economies and inclusive tech. With specific focus in breaking news, she has covered some of the world's most significant stories.

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