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TheGrandExquisitor t1_ivaqyyi wrote

Reply to comment by Zoomalude in What is the cause of the steep escarpment at the base of Olympus Mons? by Strong-Ball-1089

This is a very complex structure. And at this scale (which is MASSIVE...I mean the footprint of Olympus Mons is pretty much equal to the entire area of France. Oh, and it is 25km tall. There is a lot going on in there.

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willun t1_ivcort1 wrote

Isn’t it basically flat? 25km over the area of France should be so gentle a slope as to be unnoticeable

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TheGrandExquisitor t1_ivctrs6 wrote

As I recall that is true. It can basically be walked up with no special equipment (theoretically of course...I don't think it is that smooth, but the issue would be the local gradient, not the overall gradient.)

That is, after you get up the 7000 meter escarpment. That seems like it would be slightly more difficult.

But hey, after that the next 300km are easy!

I've always wondered if Olympus Mons wouldn't be an ideal place for a Mars based telescope. I think the top is almost out of the atmosphere.

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willun t1_ivddkdq wrote

Mars atmosphere is thin, almost a vacuum being about 1% of earth. Something those who are big on Mars colonies get upset if you remind them. So it may not make much difference.

A telescope on the moon would be easier than putting on Mars but i guess if you were going to do it on Mars than Olympic Mons would be a good place. We put them on volcanoes on Earth frequently so there is lots of precedence.

The moon has a lower rotation speed so probably has other benefits too.

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