Orcus Patera
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/MOLA_orcus_patera.jpg/220px-MOLA_orcus_patera.jpg)
Orcus Patera is a region on the surface of the planet Mars first photographed by Mariner 4. Of unknown formation, whether by volcanic, tectonic, or cratering causes, the region includes a depression about 380 kilometres (240 miles) long, 140 kilometres (87 miles) wide, surrounded by a rim up to 1.8 kilometres (1 mile) high.
Description
Orcus Patera was first imaged by Mariner 4.[1] It is a depression about 380 kilometres (240 miles) long, 140 kilometres (87 miles) wide, and about 0.5 kilometres (1⁄3 mile) deep but with a relatively smooth floor.[2] It has a rim up to 1.8 kilometres (1 mile) high.[2]
It has experienced aeolian processes, and has some small craters and graben structures.[2] However, it is not known how the patera originally formed.[2] Theories include volcanic, tectonic, or cratering events.[2] A study in 2000 that incorporated new results from Mars Global Surveyor along with older Viking data, did not come out clearly in favor of either volcanic or cratering processes.[3]
Mars Express observed this region in 2005, yielding a digital terrain model and color pictures.[2]
Images
Viking
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/OrcusPatera_zoom.jpg)
Mars Express
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/98/Orcus_Patera_by_HRSC.jpg/800px-Orcus_Patera_by_HRSC.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/Elevation_of_Orcus_Patera_and_surroundings.jpg/800px-Elevation_of_Orcus_Patera_and_surroundings.jpg)
Location
Orcus Patera is west of Olympus Mons and east of Elysium Mons.[2] It is about halfway between those two volcanoes, and east and north of Gale crater.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Elysium_Planitia_topo.jpg/800px-Elysium_Planitia_topo.jpg)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/16/USGS-Mars-MC-15-ElysiumRegion-mola.png/800px-USGS-Mars-MC-15-ElysiumRegion-mola.png)
See also
- Marte Vallis
- Tartarus Colles
- Schiller (crater) (elongated Lunar feature)
- Eden Patera (suspect collapsed caldera or impact crater)
External links
- ESA - Mars’s mysterious elongated crater (27 August 2010)
- Google Mars - Orcus Patera
- Crater in Orcus Patera (MRO HiRISE)
- http://www.uahirise.org/results.php?keyword=Orcus+Patera&order=release_date&submit=Search
- Orcus Patera : Impact Crater or Volcanic Caldera? (2000)
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
References
- ^ Williams, Dave; Friedlander, Jay. "The Orcus Patera region on Mars". Mars - Mariner 4. NASA. Retrieved December 20, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g "HRSC Press Release #471 - Orcus Patera (orbit 2216 & 2238)". 2010-08-27. Archived from the original on 2014-08-07.
- ^ Orcus Patera : Impact Crater or Volcanic Caldera? (2000)
- ^ "Catalog Page for PIA00175".
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