Scientists say Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck—dramatic trenches near the lunar south pole—were carved in a blast that unleashed 130 times the amount of energy in Earth’s global ...

Credit: NASA/SVS/Ernie T. Wright About 3.81 billion years ago, a giant impactor rocked the Moon’s south pole. It formed the Schrödinger impact basin, which remains clearly visible today.

Unlike the Grand Canyon, which was sculpted gradually over millions of years by the Colorado River, Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck were formed in a matter of minutes. This rapid formation ...

This illustration depicts the Vallis Schrödinger (left) and Vallis Planck (right) canyons on the lunar surface. NASA\SVS\Ernie T. Wright, courtesy ...

The two canyons, called Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck, are located on the far side of the moon, so they can only be seen from orbit—not from Earth. Each canyon is over 165 miles long and ...

Two such lunar canyons, Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck, stretch over 270 km (168 miles) each, with depths of 2.7 km (1.7 miles) and 3.5 km (2.2 miles), respectively — comparable to Earth ...

Scientists say Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck—dramatic trenches near the lunar south pole—were carved in a blast that unleashed 130 times the amount of energy in Earth's global nuclear ...

Those two canyons—named Vallis Schrödinger and Vallis Planck—are significant clues to that turbulent time in the Moon’s past. And, they’re impressive.

One of the canyons, called Vallis Planck, measures about 174 miles long and 2.2 miles deep. The other, called Vallis Schrödinger, is about 168 miles long and 1.7 miles deep.

Vallis Schrödinger is 168 miles (270 kilometers) long and 1.7 miles (2.7 kilometers) deep, and Vallis Planck is 174 miles (280 kilometers) long and 2.2 miles (3.5 kilometers) deep.