This month, ESA’s Mars Express mission is spotlighting the Sharbatana Valley, a massive Martian canyon marked by evidence of ancient water, volcanic activity, impact craters, and collapsed terrain.
Located near the Martian equator, the Charvatana Gorges span approximately 1,300 kilometers (1,300 kilometers) of Mars’ total length, which is roughly the length of Italy. The latest images from the spacecraft’s High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) focus on the northern portion of the valley that winds through the Martian landscape.
In October 2025, Mars Express also released a video tour of this remarkable region, following the path of this valley from its source in the highlands of Zante Terra to its terminus in the smoother terrain of the Chryse Plain.
Sharbatana Valley in the shape of an ancient flood
Scientists believe that the Sharvatana Gorge was formed about 3.5 billion years ago after large amounts of groundwater gushed to the surface. The resulting floods tore apart the landscape, carving deep channels and forcing water downhill.
The main valley visible in the image enters the bottom left of the frame and exits toward the north on the right side of the frame. It is approximately 10 kilometers wide and reaches a depth of approximately 500 meters, and its features are particularly evident on the accompanying topographical map.
Researchers believe the valley was once deeper than it appears today. Over billions of years, different materials gradually filled parts of the waterway. As seen in the accompanying 3D perspective view, one particularly prominent blue-black spot in the rugged part of the valley is believed to be volcanic ash that was later redistributed by the Martian winds.
Water, lava, and evidence of a possible ancient ocean
Sharbatana Canyon is one of the many outflow channels found in this region of Mars. This region marks the boundary between the cratered southern highlands (on the left) and the smoother northern lowlands (on the right).
Nearby is Planitia Chryse, one of Mars’ lowest regions (see map). Many of Mars’ major outflow channels terminate there, and some scientists have suggested that the region may once have been home to a large ocean during warmer, wetter times in Mars’ history.
Chaotic terrain and impact craters
The area surrounding the Sharbatana Gorge contains a number of additional geological features, all of which are labeled with annotated images of the area.
Outflow channels on Mars are often associated with so-called chaotic topography, landscapes filled with broken blocks, ridges, and irregular rock piles. This image shows a chaotic topography in a large section of the valley near dark volcanic ash deposits (see image at the top of this article).
Scientists believe that this type of landform formed when underground ice began to melt. As the ice disappeared, the ground above it shifted and collapsed. Similar chaotic landscapes have been observed by the Mars Express in areas such as Pyrae Regio, Iani Chaos, Ariadnes Corres, Aram Chaos, and Hydraotes Chaos.
Numerous impact craters are also visible throughout the region. Some remain clearly visible, while others have been partially buried or eroded over time. Some are surrounded by an ejecta blanket of debris blown outward during the initial impact.
The smooth appearance of much of the terrain suggests that lava once flowed across the area. As the lava cooled and contracted, it folded and wrinkled, creating uneven features known as “wrinkle ridges.” You can also see isolated hills called “mesas” (for example, top right). These are the remains of old raised surfaces that have slowly eroded over time.
Over 20 years of Mars exploration
This image was taken by the HRSC camera, one of eight scientific instruments on board Mars Express. Since its launch in 2003, the spacecraft has spent more than 20 years studying the Red Planet, mapping its surface in color and in three dimensions in unprecedented detail.
The data collected by Mars Express has greatly expanded scientists’ understanding of Mars and its geological history.
Mars Express HRSC was developed and operated by the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR). Processing of the camera data took place at the DLR Space Institute in Berlin-Adlershof. Researchers from the Planetary Science and Remote Sensing Group at Freie Universität Berlin used this data to create the image product shown here.
