The asteroid Vesta, in the main belt, has a mountain 22 kilometres high, almost 2.5 times that of Everest. NASA discovered it within the Rheasilvia crater.
Mount Everest, at 8,849 metres, is the highest peak on Earth, but there are formations in the Solar System that dwarf it. On the asteroid Vesta, one of the largest in the main belt, rises a mountain 22 kilometres high, nearly two and a half times that of the roof of the world. This giant is located at the south pole of the asteroid and has fascinated scientists since NASA's Dawn mission studied it in detail.
The peak of Rheasilvia: a colossus of 22 kilometres
The mountain is located within the enormous crater Rheasilvia, an impact basin at the south pole of Vesta. According to data from the Dawn probe, the central peak rises 22 kilometres from the base of the crater, making it one of the tallest known mountains in the Solar System. To put it into perspective, Everest measures 8,849 metres above sea level.
Scientists believe this formation emerged after a colossal impact around 1 billion years ago. A large object collided with Vesta, ejecting enormous amounts of material into space and creating this imposing elevation.
Vesta: a protoplanet with geological history
Vesta, officially 4 Vesta, was discovered on March 29, 1807 by the German astronomer Heinrich Wilhelm Olbers. With a diameter of about 525 kilometres, it is the second most massive object in the asteroid belt, only behind Ceres. Researchers consider it a protoplanet: a body that began to form as a planet in the early millions of years of the Solar System, but whose growth was interrupted.
The Dawn mission orbited Vesta between 2011 and 2012 for over a year, obtaining high-resolution images and detailed maps of its surface. Thanks to this exploration, it was discovered that Vesta has a very diverse surface, with ancient lava flows, enormous craters, and signs that it experienced geological processes similar to those of rocky planets.
A fossil of the origin of the Solar System
Experts consider Vesta a kind of "fossil" of the birth of the Solar System. Having remained relatively intact for billions of years, it preserves clues about the origin of Earth and the other planets. Studying its composition and geology helps to understand how rocky bodies formed.
For readers interested in astronomy, Vesta offers a unique window into the past. NASA continues to analyse data from Dawn, and future missions could bring samples from its surface. For now, the mountain of Rheasilvia remains an unbeatable record in our cosmic neighbourhood.
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