WASHINGTON: Scientists have spotted what they believe could be the remains of a vast supervolcano on the Martian surface.
The vast crater measures around 40x30km, and at its deepest point, the crater dips as low as 1750m below the surrounding plains.
Experts say the discovery could be the red planet’s equivalent of the giant Yellowstone volcano on Earth.
The images were taken by the high-resolution stereo camera on ESA’s Mars Express on 26 November 2014, and focus on the Siloe Patera feature in the Arabia Terra region in the north of Mars.
Crater-like features which could be the footprints of the cataclysmic events have been discovered at several sites in the Martian northern highlands.
Scientists believe they were left behind by massive volcanic explosions that blasted ash and lava out of the planet’s surface more than three billion years ago.
The new area, called Siloe Patera, comprises two large nested craters, close to the centre of the main colour image.
The outer rim measures about 40 x 30 km and, at its deepest point, the crater dips as low as 1750m below the surrounding plains.
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