Ascraeus Mons is a large shield volcano located in the Tharsis region of the planet Mars. It is the northernmost and tallest of three shield volcanoes collectively known as the Tharsis Montes.
Colorized MOLA topography of Ascraeus Mons and its neighbourhood. Note the broad lava aprons at the southwestern and northeastern edges of the volcano. Also, note that the surrounding lava plains to the northwest have a much lower elevation than plains to the southeast.
Flank terraces on slopes of Ascraeus Mons give the volcano's northwestern (left) and southeastern flanks (right) a rumpled appearance. Note the numerous depressions and channels on the volcano's southwestern flank (bottom). Vertical exaggeration is 3x. Image is THEMIS IR daytime mosaic overlain on MOLA topography.
THEMIS IR daytime mosaic of fan-shaped deposit at western edge of Ascraeus Mons. The deposits are believed to be glacial moraines formed by mountain glaciers.
Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image of lava channel on the northeastern summit of Ascraeus Mons.
Tharsis is a vast volcanic plateau centered near the equator in the western hemisphere of Mars. The region is home to the largest volcanoes in the Solar System, including the three enormous shield volcanoes Arsia Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Ascraeus Mons, which are collectively known as the Tharsis Montes. The tallest volcano on the planet, Olympus Mons, is often associated with the Tharsis region but is actually located off the western edge of the plateau. The name Tharsis is the Greco-Latin transliteration of the biblical Tarshish, the land at the western extremity of the known world.
MOLA topography of the Thaumasia Plateau (Syria-Thaumasia block) and southern Tharsis. The volcano shown at the left is Arsia Mons. Valles Marineris extends across the northern edge. The areas in brown have the highest elevations on the Tharsis Plateau and may be considered the "summit region" of the Tharsis bulge.
Orographic water ice clouds hover over the volcanic peaks of the central Tharsis region in this color image mosaic from Mars Global Surveyor. Olympus Mons dominates at upper left. At center are the three Tharsis Montes: Arsia Mons at bottom, Pavonis Mons at center, and Ascraeus Mons at top.
Images of ice water clouds over Tharsis taken by the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, 2016
