Valles Marineris

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The Valles Marineris canyon system, located just east of the Tharsis region on Mars' equator, stretches an astonishing 2,500 miles in length and plunges up to 4 miles deep. To put this enormous scale into perspective, consider that the Grand Canyon in Arizona measures approximately 500 miles long and typically less than a mile deep. In fact, Valles Marineris is as extensive as the United States itself, covering roughly 20 percent of Mars' circumference. This gargantuan canyon system spans from the Noctis Labyrinthus region to the east's chaotic terrain, with most researchers currently attributing its formation to a large "crack" or rift in the Martian crust that developed as the planet cooled and its interior solidified. The Tharsis region's more buoyant crust likely played a significant role in this process, widening the rift through erosion over time. Interestingly, near the eastern flanks of Valles Marineris, certain channels appear to have been carved by liquid water flow, challenging current understanding of the canyon system's origins.