Olympus Mons

Olympus Mons is a vast shield volcano on Mars, about 22 kilometers high and the tallest known planetary mountain in the Solar System.

Shield volcano: A broad volcano built by repeated eruptions of fluid lava that spreads over gentle slopes. Olympus Mons is the Solar System’s largest known example of this volcanic form.
Hotspot (geology): A long-lived region of unusually hot mantle that can produce volcanic activity as a tectonic plate moves above it. A persistent magma source is one explanation for Olympus Mons’s prolonged growth.
Olympus Mons caldera: A complex summit depression on Olympus Mons formed by the collapse of volcanic chambers. Its overlapping collapse structures preserve evidence of repeated eruptions and magma withdrawal.
Mauna Kea: A Hawaiian shield volcano whose base-to-summit height exceeds that of Mount Everest when measured from the seafloor. It is a terrestrial comparison for a volcano whose full height is hidden by its surroundings.
Tharsis Montes: A chain of three large shield volcanoes in Mars’s Tharsis region. These neighboring volcanoes share the elevated volcanic province that hosts Olympus Mons.
Lava flow: Molten rock that erupts and moves across a planetary surface before solidifying. Successive lava flows built Olympus Mons’s broad shield and extensive flanks.
Olympus Mons aureole: A set of lobate deposits surrounding the base of Olympus Mons on Mars. The aureole’s unusual terrain may record massive flank failures and debris movement.
Mount Everest: Earth’s highest mountain above sea level, located in the Himalayas. Its familiar elevation highlights how planetary mountain height depends on the chosen reference surface.
Tharsis bulge: A vast volcanic rise on Mars that includes several of the planet’s largest volcanoes. The regional uplift provides the setting for Olympus Mons’s exceptional size.
Volcanism on Mars: The formation and activity of volcanoes on Mars through the planet’s geological history. Olympus Mons is the most prominent product of Martian volcanism.

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