 Map showing location of Aureum Chaos (shown on the far left) along with Arsinoes Chaos (far left), Iani Chaos, Margaritifer Chaos, and other nearby features | |
| Coordinates | 4°24′S 27°00′W / 4.4°S 27°W |
|---|---|
| Length | 368 km |
| Discoverer | Mariner 9 |
Aureum Chaos is a rough, collapsed region (chaos terrain) in the Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle (MC-19) portion of the planet Mars at approximately 4.4° south latitude and 27° west longitude, it is also in the west of Margaritifer Terra. It is 368 km across and was named after a classical albedo feature name.[1]
The classic name came from one of the first maps of Mars drawn by Schiaparelli who has been called the "Father of Mars." He called a feature "Aurea Cherso, which translates to the golden peninsula—an ancient name for Malaya.[2] Aureum is the Latin word for gold. In chemistry, the symbol for gold is Au from gold's Latin name.
In many places, the canyons of Aureum Chaos are about 1 km deep—a little more than half the depth of the Grand Canyon. But, Aureum Chaos covers an area about the size of the state of Alabama, almost 20 times larger than the Grand Canyon National Park.
- ^ "Aureum Chaos". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
- ^ MacDonald, T. 1971. The Origins of Martian Nomenclature. Icarus: 15. 233-240.