Hellas Planitia Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
Hellas Planitia, also known as the Hellas Impact Basin, is a roughly circular impact crater located in the southern hemisphere of the planet Mars. With a diameter of about 2,100 km, it is the largest impact structure on the planet. The basin was formed during the heavy bombardment period of the Solar System, about 3.9 billion years ago, when a large asteroid impacted Mars.Due to its size and contrasting light colour, Hellas Planitia was one of the first Martian features discovered from Earth by telescope. It was at one point known as 'Lockyer Land' before Giovanni Schiaparelli gave the feature the name Hellas ('Greece').
The altitude difference between the rim and the bottom of the structure is 9 km. The depth of the crater (4 km below the topographic datum, or "sea level" of Mars) explains the atmospheric pressure at the bottom: 8.4 mbar. This is 38% higher than the pressure at the topographical datum (6.1 mbar). The pressure is high enough that water is speculated to be present in its liquid phase at temperatures slightly above 0° C.
This is an Article on Hellas Planitia. Page Contains Information, Facts Details or Explanation Guide About Hellas Planitia