Vastitas Borealis (Mars)
Data as of 2026-10-23
What it is
- Type
- Vastitas, vastitates
- IAU definition
Extensive plain
- Diameter
- 2,002.9 km, 59 % of the radius of its body
- Centre
- 87.73° N, 32.53° east (planetocentric latitude, east longitude from 0 to 360°, the IAU convention)
- Name adopted
- 1973
- Origin of the name
Classical albedo feature name.
Quoted in English, as the IAU publishes it.
In Galaxy
Opens its body in the application, the camera turned towards Vastitas Borealis.
Observed by
Instruments whose footprint touches this formation, counted by the PDS Orbital Data Explorer (data frozen on September 29, 2026). A footprint that touches it is not a study of it.
| Mission and instrument | Products | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mars Global Surveyor · Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter | 5,681 | September 15, 1997 | June 30, 2001 |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter · Radio Science Subsystem | 2 | March 27, 1998 | March 30, 2015 |
| Mars Global Surveyor · Mars Orbiter Camera | 36,161 | June 1, 1998 | October 17, 2006 |
| 2001 Mars Odyssey Orbiter · Thermal Emission Imaging System | 252,969 | February 23, 2002 | November 26, 2025 |
| ESA's Mars Express · Planetary Fourier Spectrometer | 15,930 | January 31, 2004 | December 31, 2018 |
| ESA's Mars Express · Observatoire Mineralogie, Eau, Glaces, Activite | 5,804 | January 31, 2004 | January 14, 2024 |
| ESA's Mars Express · High Resolution Stereo Camera | 4,424 | March 23, 2004 | July 4, 2025 |
| ESA's Mars Express · Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionsphere Sounding | 31,032 | June 29, 2005 | January 7, 2022 |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter · Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars | 410,212 | September 27, 2006 | March 31, 2022 |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter · Context Camera | 9,927 | September 27, 2006 | October 19, 2025 |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter · High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment | 19,005 | September 29, 2006 | December 7, 2025 |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter · Shallow Radar | 35,713 | December 6, 2006 | February 8, 2026 |
| ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter · Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System | 4,402 | April 15, 2018 | December 3, 2024 |
| Viking Orbiter 1 and 2 · Visual Imaging Subsystem Camera A/B | 4,082 | no date published | no date published |
Sources
International Astronomical Union Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature, Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, read on October 23, 2026. Feature page: https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/6333
Type definitions: IAU Descriptor Terms, read on October 17, 2026. https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/DescriptorTerms