Volcanoes have been found on all of the terrestrial planets. Where are the largest volcanoes in the inner Solar System?

Short Answer

Expert verified
The largest volcanoes in the inner Solar System are on Mars, with Olympus Mons being the largest.

Step by step solution

01

Identify the Terrestrial Planets

The terrestrial planets in the inner Solar System are Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars.
02

Detect Volcanic Activity

Among the terrestrial planets, check each for notable volcanoes. Determine which planet has the largest known volcano.
03

Find Largest Volcano

On Mars, Olympus Mons is the largest volcano in the inner Solar System. It is about 22 kilometers (13.6 miles) high and 600 kilometers (373 miles) in diameter.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

Terrestrial Planets
Terrestrial planets are the rocky planets that make up the inner Solar System. These planets include Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Unlike the gas giants such as Jupiter and Saturn, terrestrial planets have solid surfaces. Each of these planets has unique features and characteristics.
Mercury is the smallest terrestrial planet and closest to the Sun. It's known for its heavily cratered surface.
Venus is similar in size to Earth but has a thick atmosphere dominated by carbon dioxide, leading to extreme surface temperatures and pressure.
Earth, our home, is unique for its liquid water and life-supporting atmosphere.
Mars, often called the Red Planet, has a very thin atmosphere and is home to the largest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons.
All these planets have shown evidence of volcanic activity, although the extent and impact vary significantly among them.
Volcanic Activity
Volcanic activity is a crucial process in shaping the surfaces and atmospheres of planets. This activity is driven by the movement of molten rock, or magma, beneath a planet's crust. When magma erupts onto the surface, it forms volcanoes.
Each terrestrial planet exhibits different types of volcanic activity:
  • Mercury has evidence of ancient volcanic plains, suggesting a volcanic past.
  • Venus has numerous volcanoes and extensive lava plains, indicating significant volcanic activity in its history.
  • Earth has a variety of volcanism, from explosive eruptions to gentle lava flows, and remains volcanically active today.
  • Mars has some of the largest volcanoes in the solar system, though it is now mostly geologically inactive.
Volcanic activity plays a role in resurfacing planets, releasing gases into the atmosphere, and providing heat signatures that can be detected by spacecraft.
Olympus Mons
Olympus Mons is the largest volcano not just on Mars, but in the entire inner Solar System. Standing at approximately 22 kilometers (13.6 miles) high, it is about two and a half times the height of Mount Everest.
The diameter of Olympus Mons spans around 600 kilometers (373 miles), which is roughly the size of the state of Arizona.
Olympus Mons is a shield volcano, characterized by its wide, gently sloping sides formed by the eruption of low-viscosity lava. This type of lava can travel great distances, creating the massive volcanic structure observed today.
The sheer size of Olympus Mons is a testament to the significant volcanic activity on Mars, even though the planet is now mostly dormant. Its presence helps scientists understand the geologic and volcanic history of Mars, revealing insights into the planet's past environments and potential for supporting life.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Do a news search to see the latest news story about water on the Moon or water on Mars. What is the story based on-new space data? improved analysis of old data? If the information comes from a current space mission, go to the mission website and read the original press release. How does the news story compare with the press release? Is it just a summation? Did the writer get comments from scientists who were not directly involved in the study? How certain are the results about water?

Lava flows on the Moon and Mercury created large, smooth plains. We don't see similar features on Earth because a. Earth has less lava. b. Earth had fewer large impacts in the past. c. Earth has plate tectonics that recycle the surface. d. Earth is large compared to the size of these plains, so they are not as noticeable. e. Earth rotates much faster than either of these other worlds.

Different radioisotopes have different half-lives. For example, the half-life of carbon-14 is 5,700 years, the half-life of uranium-235 is 704 million years, the half-life of potassium-40 is 1.3 billion years, and the half-life of rubidium-87 is 49 billion years. a. Why wouldn't you use an isotope with a half-life similar to that of carbon-14 to determine the age of the Solar System? b. The age of the universe is approximately 14 billion years. Does that mean that no rubidium- 87 has decayed yet?

Archaeological samples are often dated by radiocarbon dating. The half-life of carbon-14 is 5,700 years. a. After how many half-lives will the sample have only \(1 / 64\) as much carbon-14 as it originally contained? b. How much time will have passed? c. If the daughter product of carbon-14 is present in the sample when it forms (even before any radioactive decay happens), you cannot assume that every daughter you see is the result of carbon-14 decay. If you did make this assumption, would you overestimate or underestimate the age of a sample?

\(\mathbf{T} / \mathbf{F}:\) Volcanism has been present on all the terrestrial planets.

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