The Map of Mars

Winner of the 2001 John Bartholomew Award from the British Cartographic Society for excellence in thematic cartography.

See Mars as it really looks, from the heights of Olympus Mons (nearly 70,000 feet above the surface), to ancient canyons, to Hellas Planitia, the lowest point on Mars, where a meteorite punched a hole in the surface 1,300 miles wide and five miles deep. Data from the Mars Global Surveyor satellite have born an exquisitely detailed representation of this planet. A National Geographic exclusive, this dual-sided map is an amalgamation of almost 1000 images taken from space, merged with 330 million elevation points to create the sharpest view yet of Mars and its spectacular terrain.

The reverse features over 18 insets that illustrate the past and present geography and landscape of Mars including evidence of daily surface changes from wind, ice, and possibly water. Also view evidence of past catastrophic floods and massive volcanic activity—with lava flows larger than the area of Russia! A time line reveals our fascination with Mars, and our efforts to describe it with scientific exploration and with Hollywood fantasy.

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