Utopia Planitia
Viking 2 lander view of ice in Utopia Planitia
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| Location | Northeast of Isidis Planitia, northwest of Aetheria |
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| Coordinates | 46°42′N 117°30′E / 46.7°N 117.5°ECoordinates: 46°42′N 117°30′E / 46.7°N 117.5°E |
Utopia Planitia (Greek and Latin: "Nowhere Land Plain"--loosely, the plain of paradise) is a large plain within Utopia, the largest recognized impact basin on Mars and in the Solar System with an estimated diameter of 3,300 km, and is the Martian region where the Viking 2 lander touched down and began exploring on September 3, 1976. It is located at the antipode of Argyre Planitia, centered at 46°42′N 117°30′E / 46.7°N 117.5°E. It is in the Casius quadrangle, Amenthes quadrangle, and the Cebrenia quadrangle of Mars.
Many rocks at Utopia Planitia appear perched, as if wind removed much of the soil at their bases. A hard surface crust is formed by solutions of minerals moving up through soil and evaporating at the surface. Some areas of the surface exhibit what is called "scalloped topography", a surface that seems to have been carved out by an ice cream scoop. This surface is thought to have formed by the degradation of an ice-rich permafrost.
On November 22, 2016, NASA reported finding a large amount of underground ice in the Utopia Planitia region of Mars. The volume of water detected has been estimated to be equivalent to the volume of water in Lake Superior. (image)
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