Astronomy:Skadi Mons

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Short description: Misidentified feature on Venus
Skadi Mons
File:250px
Map of Maxwell Montes with Skadi Mons labeled
Feature typeMountain (disproven)[1]
LocationCentral Ishtar Terra, Venus
Coordinates [ ⚑ ] : 64°N 4°E / 64°N 4°E / 64; 4[1]
EponymSkadi

Skadi Mons /ˈskɑːði ˈmɒnz/ was a misidentified geologic feature on Venus. For 31 years it was thought to be the tallest mountain of the planet, located in Maxwell Montes at the center of Ishtar Terra, but further analysis of Venus's topography in 2025 showed that there was no mountain.[1] The name Skadi Mons was approved by the International Astronomical Union in 1994, but was officially dropped and disallowed on 17 December 2025.[1] The name came from Skaði, the norse goddess of skiing (Öndurdís).[1] The word means "damage" or "shadow", being related to the name Scandinavia and maybe the underworld.[2]

Skadi Mons was previously thought to be the highest point on Venus's surface,[3] with an altitude of about 10,700 meters (about 35,000 feet) above the mean planetary radius.[4] This apparently high altitude led scientists to initially believe that Skadi Mons could have a cooler temperature (about 380 °C or 716 °F) and lower atmospheric pressure (about 45 bar or 44 atm).[5][6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Skadi Mons". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ↑ John McKinnell (2005). Meeting the other in Norse myth and legend. Ds Brewer. p. 63. ISBN 978-1-84384-042-8. https://books.google.com/books?id=P2x2x3neFywC. 
  3. ↑ Beall, Abigail (2020-01-16). "Race to Venus: What we'll discover on Earth's toxic twin". https://www.sciencefocus.com/space/race-to-venus-what-well-discover-on-earths-toxic-twin. 
  4. ↑ Warren, Haygen (2021-07-14). "Previewing EnVision: ESA’s newest mission to Venus". https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/07/envision-esa-venus/2/. 
  5. ↑ Basilevsky A. T., Head J. W. (2003). "The surface of Venus". Reports on Progress in Physics 66 (10): 1699–1734. doi:10.1088/0034-4885/66/10/R04. Bibcode: 2003RPPh...66.1699B. 
  6. ↑ McGill G. E.; Stofan E. R.; Smrekar S. E. (2010). "Venus tectonics". in T. R. Watters. Planetary Tectonics. Cambridge University Press. pp. 81–120. ISBN 978-0-521-76573-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=9PD5hxPb6fkC&pg=PA81. Retrieved 2016-10-16. 



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