Geology of Another Planet

As you will discover in the coming weeks, other bodies in our Solar System have cool geology, too. And where there's geology, a geologic map isn't far behind! Like their terran counterparts, geologic maps of extraterrestrial worlds display information about rock composition and age, and usually lots of other interesting information as well. We will look more closely at the Tharsis region on Mars, an area that boasts the largest volcanoes in the Solar System (see Figure 3-5).


Figure 3-5. Ascraeus Mons, one of the giant volcanoes of the Tharsis region on Mars. At 18,209 m (almost 60,000 feet!) elevation, Ascraeus Mons is the second highest volcano on Mars, after Olympus Mons at 21,171 m elevation