Mars Express, a mission operated by the European Space Agency, took an astounding new image of the Red Planet's complex surface geology.

The new photograph, which was captured by the orbiter's High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC), concentrates on the flanks of the Thaumasia Planum, a sizable volcanic plateau. This volcanic region's deep surface fractures and water-carved valleys hint at Mars' distant past.

The highest peaks in this area rise staggering 14,763 feet (4,500 metres) above the plateau's lowest points, giving the area's surface features a highly varied appearance. These ridges and valleys, shaped nearly four billion years ago, have undergone such little change, which is why they provide information about what Mars was like then.

Also Read: Mars Rover Puts Away 10th Sample, Finishing Red Planet Depot

Following a statement from the European Space Agency, the Thaumasia Planum region is thought to have formed in the very early days of Mars. It is largely made up of enormous lava flows that covered the surface in volcanic ash and dust before seismic activity. Running water produced the fascinating features we see today (ESA).

According to a statement from ESA officials, "this duration was a turbulent one, with many of Mars' standout features just beginning to form" (opens in new tab). Thaumasia Planum is close to the Tharsis volcanoes, some of the biggest in the solar system; the load and stress of their formation may have caused this region to start fracturing before the volcanoes later flooded the area with lava.

The planet probably went through active tectonics then, which caused the ground to move and shift. The volatile ground produced "wrinkle ridges" as the planet's crust was compressed and stretched as lava flowed over the surface and later cooled and solidified.

According to ESA officials, "one of the most substantial ridges is seen to the bottom-right of centre [of the image] as an unsteady diagonal line scored into the surface."

The planet's crust would have experienced significant stresses due to active tectonics, which is why the deep surface fractures we see today exist. These fractures, which span the centre of the new image and are known as Nectaris Fossae, are thought to have formed the Valles Marineris canyon system, the biggest in the solar system, which is situated to the north of Thaumasia Planum.

Also Read: No mysterious entryway was discovered by NASA on Mars.

Along with once-active tectonics, it is also thought that water once flowed across the Martian surface some 3.8 billion years ago, chiselling into the rock and sculpting the deep channels we now know as Protva Valles. These streams can be broad and shallow or deeply eroded valleys, like the dense patch in the new image's lower right corner.

ESA officials claimed that "the origin of these water flows remains unclear; they appear to emerge at different heights, hinting that water may have seeped through subterranean layers of Mars."

The European Space Agency is currently carrying out the Mars Express project (ESA). The agency's first planetary mission, the Mars Express, is studying Mars. Originally, "express" referred to how quickly and effectively the spaceship was developed and constructed. 

Express also refers to the spacecraft's relatively brief interplanetary journey, which was caused by its launch at a time when Mars and Earth's orbits were the closest in 60,000 years.