Northern and Southern Hemisphere
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Mars was once thought to be just a huge planet filled with sand dunes. But they were wrong because there are multiple differences in both hemispheres. In the north there are many sporadically cratered lowland plains. If you look close at Mars the northern craters seem to be covered up or smoothed out. The substance that cover the craters is called andesitic. How did it get there? Scientists have came up with a logical reason behind this, volcanic material, wind or even water may have deposited the sedimentary material. The southern hemisphere of Mars is a totally different landscape. The south is littered with colossal craters reaching average heights of 1.8 miles. The terrain is mainly consisting of basaltic rock.
Volcanoes on Mars
Volcanoes on Mars are very similar to ones on Earth. One of the most distinguished difference is there difference in size. This is the effect of the lithosphere in Martian territory. Located on the western equatorial area of Mars the largest volcano/tectonic complexes in our solar system is Tharsis. Tharsis is a plateau that reaches a jaw dropping height of 7 km (4.2 miles), and a stretch of 8,000 km (4,800 miles). Some think with such features this region could be loaded with much mass it can effect the axis rotation, thus leading to climate change. (Which might explain as to why Mars looks so lifeless.) Tharsis is mainly known for its housing of twelve towering volcanoes, Olympus Mons, Arsia Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Ascraeus Mon. Those are the shield volcanoes in the system. Each volcano reaches over 19 km (11.4 miles) high, as well as a diameter of 400 km (240 miles. The main interest is Olympus Mons, the reason for is it is currently the largest shield volcano in the entire solar system. This shield volcano reaches a monstrous height of 20 km (12 miles) high, with a diameter of 550 km (330 miles). Along the base of the mammoth volcano there is a cliff at the height of 1 km (0.6 miles). This leaves scientists puzzled because they can not place its origin, some predict it was once a sea cliff.
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(The smallest is Mt.Everest. Background Olympus Mons towers both mountains)
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Polar Regions on Mars
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Looking at pictures of Mars you can see two polar ice caps, one in the north, and the other in the south. If you observe carefully you can tell the northern cap is marginally larger than the south. The north about 1,000 km (600 miles) in diameter, while the south 350 km (210 miles) across. Scientists have made the prediction that the northern ice cap is made up of water in ice form, the southern cap mainly composed of ice formed by a mixture water and carbon dioxide frost.
Mawrth Vallis
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Mawrth Vallis is located in a region that leaves scientists clueless. Mwarth is a region that separates the northern lowlands and the southern highlands of the Martian planet. Scientist say Mawrth Vallis was formed by ruinous floods. The reason scientists are interested in this particular region is it could hold secrets in its soil and rocks that may support their theory that Mars was once habitable. The substance that gave scientists hope was phyllosolicates. This mineral can only be evidence of when there was high activities of water.
Shiaparelli
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The impact crater Schiaparelli was named after Giovanni Schiaparelli. Giovanni was an Italian astronomer known for his detailed map of Mars. The impact crater is 461 km (286 mile) in diameter, located near the equator. Another smaller crater within the huge impact crater consist of layers that might have formed by wind or even volcanoes. On July 30, 2014 scientist have confirmed that layers of dust at the base of the crater are covering some patches of Martian bedrock.