IAU descriptor term
Rupes in the Solar System
Rupes is the term planetary geologists use for a scarp or cliff. 113 named features carry it, across 7 of the 14 mapped worlds, the largest being Utopia Rupes on Mars at 2,493 km.
Where they are
The largest rupes anywhere
Ranked across every mapped world, by catalogued diameter.
1Utopia RupesMars2,493 km2Vaidilute RupesVenus2,000 km3Olympus RupesMars1,915 km4Hephaestus RupesMars1,707 km5Cydnus RupesMars1,551 km6Promethei RupesMars1,379 km7Olympia RupesMars1,197 km8Panchaia RupesMars1,113 km9Meteor RupesMercury990 km10Claritas RupesMars953 km11Altair RupesMercury896 km12Volasiga RupesMercury830 km13Enterprise RupesMercury822 km14Uorsar RupesVenus820 km15Vesta RupesVenus788 km16Grifo RupesMercury783 km17Fornax RupesVenus729 km18Ut RupesVenus676 km19Rupes TenuisMars669 km20Beagle RupesMercury630 km21Paramour RupesMercury616 km22Hestia RupesVenus588 km23Chikyu RupesMercury561 km24Darshak RupesMercury560 km25Thyles RupesMars549 km26Rupes AltaiThe Moon545 km27Bosporos RupesMars531 km28Antares RupesMercury530 km29Duyfken RupesMercury518 km30Alpha Crucis RupesMercury511 km
What they are named after
Naming themes are set per world, so one descriptor can draw on very different sources depending on where it sits. Across all 113 rupes, 44 categories appear.
Greek19England11United States6Roman6Latin6France5The Netherlands (Dutch)4Italy4