A canyon (; archaic

British English British English is the set of Variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United Kingdom, especially Great Britain. More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in England, or, more broadly, to ...

spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between

escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...

s or

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff or rock face is an area of Rock (geology), rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. ...

s resulting from

weathering Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals (as well as wood and artificial materials) through contact with water, atmospheric gases, sunlight, and biological organisms. It occurs '' in situ'' (on-site, with little or no move ...

and the erosive activity of a river over

geologic time scale The geologic time scale or geological time scale (GTS) is a representation of time based on the rock record of Earth. It is a system of chronological dating that uses chronostratigraphy (the process of relating strata to time) and geochro ...

s. Rivers have a natural tendency to cut through underlying surfaces, eventually wearing away rock layers as

sediment Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently sediment transport, transported by the action of ...

s are removed downstream. A

river bed A streambed or stream bed is the bottom of a stream or river and is confined within a channel or the banks of the waterway. Usually, the bed does not contain terrestrial (land) vegetation and instead supports different types of aquatic vegeta ...

will gradually reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water into which the river drains. The processes of weathering and erosion will form canyons when the river's

headwaters The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

and

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

are at significantly different elevations, particularly through regions where softer rock layers are intermingled with harder layers more resistant to weathering. A canyon may also refer to a rift between two mountain peaks, such as those in ranges including the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

, the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

, the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

or the

Andes The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...

. Usually, a river or stream carves out such splits between mountains. Examples of mountain-type canyons are

Provo Canyon Provo Canyon is located in unincorporated Utah County and Wasatch County, Utah. Provo Canyon runs between Mount Timpanogos on the north and Mount Cascade on the south. The canyon extends from Orem on the west end to Heber City on the east. P ...

in Utah or

Yosemite Valley Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a U-shaped valley, glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California, United States. The valley is about long a ...

in California's

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

. Canyons within mountains, or gorges that have an opening on only one side, are called box canyons.

Slot canyon A slot canyon is a long, narrow channel or drainageway with sheer rock walls that are typically eroded into either sandstone or other sedimentary rock. A slot canyon has depth-to-width ratios that typically exceed 10:1 over most of its length and ...

s are very narrow canyons that often have smooth walls. Steep-sided valleys in the

seabed The seabed (also known as the seafloor, sea floor, ocean floor, and ocean bottom) is the bottom of the ocean. All floors of the ocean are known as seabeds. The structure of the seabed of the global ocean is governed by plate tectonics. Most of ...

of the

continental slope A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust abutting oceanic crust under coastal waters. It is one of the three major zones of the ocean floor, the other two being deep-ocean basins and mid-ocean ridges. The continental margi ...

are referred to as

submarine canyon A submarine canyon is a steep-sided valley cut into the seabed of the continental slope, sometimes extending well onto the continental shelf, having nearly vertical walls, and occasionally having canyon wall heights of up to , from canyon flo ...

s. Unlike canyons on land, submarine canyons are thought to be formed by

turbidity current A turbidity current is most typically an Ocean current, underwater current of usually rapidly moving, sediment-laden water moving down a slope; although current research (2018) indicates that water-saturated sediment may be the primary actor in ...

s and

landslides Landslides, also known as landslips, rockslips or rockslides, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, mudflows, shallow or deep-seated slope failures and debris flows. Landslide ...

Etymology

The word ''canyon'' is Spanish in origin (, ), with the same meaning. The word canyon is generally used in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, while the words ''gorge'' and ''

ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion. Ravines are typically classified as larger in scale than gullies, although smaller than valleys. Ravines may also be called a cleuch, dell, ...

'' (French in origin) are used in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Oceania Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...

, though ''gorge'' and ''ravine'' are also used in some parts of North America. In the United States, place names generally use ''canyon'' in the southwest (due to their proximity to Spanish-speaking Mexico) and ''gorge'' in the northeast (which is closer to

French Canada Francophone Canadians or French-speaking Canadians are citizens of Canada who speak French, and sometimes refers only to those who speak it as their first language. In 2021, 10,669,575 people in Canada or 29.2% of the total population spoke Fren ...

), with the rest of the country graduating between these two according to geography. In Canada, a ''gorge'' is usually narrow while a ''ravine'' is more open and often wooded. The military-derived word '' defile'' is occasionally used in the United Kingdom. In South Africa, ''kloof'' (in

Krantzkloof Nature Reserve __NOTOC__ The Krantzkloof Nature Reserve, managed by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, conserves 668 ha Note: This source records the surface area as 535 ha in 1989. of the Molweni ( Zulu: 'mutual greetings') and Nkutu River gorges that incise the sandst ...

) is used along with ''canyon'' (as in

Blyde River Canyon The Blyde River Canyon is a 26 km long canyon located in Mpumalanga, South Africa. It is the third-largest canyon on earth, behind the Grand Canyon and the Fish River Canyon Unlike the Grand and Fish River Canyon, the Blyde River Canyon is ...

) and ''gorge'' (in

Oribi Gorge Oribi Gorge is a canyon in southern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, 35 kilometres north-west of Port Shepstone, which itself is 120 km south of Durban. Oribi Gorge, cut by the Mzimkulwana River, is the eastern gorge of two gorges that cut ...

Formation

Most canyons were formed by a process of long-time

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as Surface runoff, water flow or wind) that removes soil, Rock (geology), rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust#Crust, Earth's crust and then sediment transport, tran ...

from a

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

or table-land level. The

s form because harder

rock strata In geology and related fields, a stratum (: strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ...

that are resistant to erosion and weathering remain exposed on the valley walls. Canyons are much more common in arid areas than in wet areas because physical weathering has a more localized effect in arid zones. The wind and water from the river combine to erode and cut away less resistant materials such as

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of Clay mineral, clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g., Kaolinite, kaolin, aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydroxide, OH)4) and tiny f ...

s. The freezing and expansion of water also serves to help form canyons. Water seeps into cracks between the rocks and freezes, pushing the rocks apart and eventually causing large chunks to break off the canyon walls, in a process known as frost wedging. Canyon walls are often formed of resistant

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

s or

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

Sometimes large rivers run through canyons as the result of gradual geological uplift. These are called

entrenched river An entrenched river, or entrenched stream is a river or stream that flows in a narrow trench or valley cut into a plain or relatively level upland. Because of lateral erosion streams flowing over gentle slopes over a time develops meandering (sn ...

s, because they are unable to easily alter their course. In the United States, the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

in the

Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...

and the

Snake River The Snake River is a major river in the interior Pacific Northwest region of the United States. About long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, which is the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. Begin ...

in the

Northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A '' compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west— ...

are two examples of

tectonic uplift Tectonic uplift is the orogeny, geologic uplift of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface that is attributed to plate tectonics. While Isostasy, isostatic response is important, an increase in the mean elevation of a region can only occur in response to ...

. Canyons often form in areas of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

rock. As limestone is soluble to a certain extent,

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

systems form in the rock. When a cave system collapses, a canyon is left, as in the

Mendip Hills The Mendip Hills (commonly called the Mendips) is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath, Somerset, Bath in Somerset, England. Running from Weston-super-Mare and the Bristol Channel in the west to the River Frome, Somerset ...

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

and

Yorkshire Dales The Yorkshire Dales are a series of valleys, or Dale (landform), dales, in the Pennines, an Highland, upland range in England. They are mostly located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, but extend into C ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

, England.

Box canyon

A box canyon is a small canyon that is generally shorter and narrower than a river canyon, with steep walls on three sides, allowing access and egress only through the mouth of the canyon. Box canyons were frequently used in the

western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. As American settlement i ...

as convenient corrals, with their entrances fenced.

Largest

The definition of "largest canyon" is imprecise, because a canyon can be large by its depth, its length, or the total area of the canyon system. Also, the inaccessibility of the major canyons in the Himalaya contributes to their not being regarded as candidates for the biggest canyon. The definition of "deepest canyon" is similarly imprecise, especially if one includes mountain canyons, as well as canyons cut through relatively flat

s (which have a somewhat well-defined rim elevation). The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon (or Tsangpo Canyon), along the Yarlung Tsangpo, Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet, China, is regarded by some as the deepest canyon on Earth at . It is slightly longer than Grand Canyon in the United States. Others consider the Kali Gandaki Gorge in midwest Nepal to be the deepest canyon, with a difference between the level of the river and the peaks surrounding it. Vying for the deepest canyon in the Americas is the Cotahuasi Canyon and Colca Canyon, in southern Peru. Both have been measured at over deep. Grand Canyon of northern Arizona in the United States, with an average depth of and a volume of , is one of the world's largest canyons. It was among the 28 finalists of the New7Wonders of Nature, New 7 Wonders of Nature worldwide poll. (Some referred to it as one of the Wonders of the World#Seven Natural Wonders of the World, seven natural wonders of the world.) The largest canyon in Europe is Tara River Canyon. The largest canyon in Africa is the Fish River Canyon in Namibia. In August 2013, the discovery of Greenland's Grand Canyon (Greenland), Grand Canyon was reported, based on the analysis of data from Operation IceBridge. It is located under an ice sheet. At long, it is believed to be the longest canyon in the world. Despite not being quite as deep or long as Grand Canyon, the Capertee Valley in Australia is actually 1 km wider than Grand Canyon, making it the widest canyon in the world.

Cultural significance

Some canyons have notable cultural significance. Evidence of archaic humans has been discovered in Africa's Olduvai Gorge. In the southwestern United States, canyons are important archeology, archeologically because of the many cliff-dwellings built in such areas, largely by the ancient Pueblo people who were their first inhabitants.

Notable examples

The following list contains only the most notable canyons of the world, grouped by region.

Africa

Namibia

*Fish River Canyon

South Africa

, Mpumalanga *

, KwaZulu-Natal

Tanzania

*Olduvai Gorge

Americas

Argentina

*Atuel River, Atuel Canyon, Mendoza Province

Brazil

*Itaimbezinho, Itaimbezinho Canyon, Rio Grande do Sul

Bolivia

* Torotoro National Park, Torotoro River Canyon

Canada

*Grand Canyon of the Stikine, British Columbia *Horseshoe Canyon (Alberta), Horseshoe Canyon, Alberta *Niagara Gorge, Ontario *Ouimet Canyon, Ontario *Fraser Canyon, British Columbia *Coaticook Gorge, Quebec *Thompson Canyon, British Columbia

Colombia

* Chicamocha Canyon, Santander Department

Mexico

*Barranca de Oblatos, Jalisco *Copper Canyon, Chihuahua (state), Chihuahua *Sumidero Canyon, Chiapas

Peru

*Cañón del Pato, Department of Ancash, Ancash Region *Colca Canyon, Arequipa Region *Cotahuasi Canyon, Arequipa Region

United States

*American Fork Canyon, Utah *Antelope Canyon, Arizona *Apple River Canyon State Park, Apple River Canyon, Illinois *Ausable Chasm, New York (state), New York *Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah *Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado *Black Hand Gorge State Nature Preserve, Black Hand Gorge, Ohio *Blackwater Canyon, West Virginia *Blue Creek Canyon, Colorado * CanyonlandsNP GreenRiverOverlook

Bluejohn Canyon, Utah *Box Canyon (Colorado), Box Canyon, Colorado *Breaks Interstate Park, Breaks Canyon, Kentucky and Virginia *Butterfield Canyon (Utah), Butterfield Canyon, Utah *Cane Creek Canyon Nature Preserve, Cane Creek, Alabama *Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Canyon de Chelly, Arizona *Canyonlands National Park, canyons of the Colorado River and its main tributary the Green River (Colorado River), Green River, Utah *Cheat Canyon, West Virginia *Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve, Clifton Gorge, Ohio *Clifty Falls State Park, Clifty Canyon, Indiana *Cloudland Canyon State Park, Cloudland Canyon, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia *Columbia River Gorge, Oregon and Washington (state), Washington *Conkle's Hollow State Nature Preserve, Conkle's Hollow, Ohio *Cottonwood Canyon (Kane County, Utah), Cottonwood Canyon, Utah *Crooked River Gorge, Oregon *Death Hollow, Utah *Desolation Canyon, Utah *Dismals Canyon, Alabama *Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, Flaming Gorge, Wyoming and Utah *Flume Gorge, New Hampshire *Glen Canyon, Utah and Arizona *Glenwood Canyon, Colorado *Gore Canyon, Colorado *Grand Canyon, Arizona *Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Wyoming *Grandstaff Canyon, Utah *Guffey Gorge (Colorado), Guffey Gorge, Colorado *Gulf Hagas, Maine *Hells Canyon, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington (state), Washington *Horse Canyon (Garfield County, Utah), Horse Canyon, Utah *Kern River Canyon, California *Kings Canyon (Millard County, Utah), Kings Canyon, Utah *Kings Canyon National Park, Kings Canyon, California *Leslie Gulch, Oregon *Linville Gorge Wilderness, Linville Gorge, North Carolina *Little Cottonwood Canyon, Utah *Little Grand Canyon, Illinois *Little River Canyon National Preserve, Little River Canyon, Alabama *Logan Canyon, Utah *Mather Gorge, Maryland *Marysvale Canyon, Utah *McCormick's Creek State Park, McCormick's Creek Canyon, Indiana *Millcreek Canyon (Salt Lake County, Utah), Millcreek Canyon, Utah *New River Gorge National River, New River Gorge, West Virginia *Ninemile Canyon (Utah), Ninemile Canyon, Utah *Ogden Canyon, Utah *Oneonta Gorge, Oregon *Palo Duro Canyon, Texas *Parleys Canyon, Utah *Pine Creek Gorge, Pennsylvania *Poudre Canyon, Colorado *Providence Canyon State Park, Providence Canyon, Georgia *

, Utah *Quechee Gorge, Vermont *Red River Gorge, Kentucky *Rio Grande Gorge, New Mexico *Royal Gorge, Colorado *Ruby Canyon, Utah *Snake River, Snake River Canyon, Idaho *Snow Canyon State Park, Snow Canyon, Utah *Stillwater Canyon, Utah *Tallulah Gorge, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia *Tenaya Canyon, California *Tennessee River Gorge, Alabama and Tennessee *The Trough, West Virginia *Unaweep Canyon, Colorado *Uncompahgre Gorge, Colorado *Waimea Canyon State Park, Waimea Canyon, Hawaii *The Walls of Jericho (canyon), Walls of Jericho, Alabama *Weber Canyon, Utah *Westwater Canyon, Utah *Wolverine Canyon, Utah *White Canyon (San Juan County, Utah), White Canyon, Utah *Zion Canyon, Utah

Asia

China

*Three Gorges, Chongqing *Tiger Leaping Gorge, Yunnan *Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon, Tibet Autonomous Region

India

*Gandikota, Kadapa District, Andhra Pradesh *Raneh Falls, Chatarpur district, Madhya Pradesh *Idukki, Western Ghats, Kerala

Indonesia

* Cukang Taneuh, Pangandaran, West Java

Others

*Afghanistan – Tang-e Gharu *Iran – Haygher Canyon in Fars province *Iraq - Rawandiz, Rawandiz Gorge in Kurdistan Region *Japan – Kiyotsu Gorge in Niigata Prefecture *Japan – Tenryū-kyō in Nagano Prefecture *Kazakhstan – Charyn Canyon *Nepal – Kali Gandaki Gorge *Russia – Delyun-Uran (Vitim River) *Pakistan – Indus River Gorge through the Himalaya *Taiwan – Taroko Gorge in Hualien County *Turkey – Ulubey Canyon Nature Park, Ulubey Canyon in Uşak Province *Turkey – Ihlara Valley in Aksaray Province

Europe

United Kingdom

*Avon Gorge, Bristol *Burrington Combe,

*Cheddar Gorge,

*Corrieshalloch Gorge, Ullapool *Ebbor Gorge,

*Gordale Scar, North Yorkshire *Winnats Pass, Derbyshire

France

*Gorges de l'Ardèche, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes *Gorges de Daluis, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur *Gorges du Tarn, Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie *Grands Goulets, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes *Verdon Gorge, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence

Ukraine

*Aktove canyon *Buky Canyon *Dniester Canyon

Others

*Albania – Osum Canyon, Kanionet e Skraparit *Albania/Montenegro – Cem (river), Cem *Bosnia and Herzegovina – Rakitnica, Trnovo, Rakitnica, Drina, Neretva, Vrbas (river), Vrbas, Unac (river), Unac, Čude Canyon, Čude, Ugar (river), Ugar, Prača (river), Prača, *Bulgaria – Trigrad Gorge, Kresna Gorge, Iskar Gorge *Finland – Korouoma Canyon, Kevo Canyon *Germany – Partnach Gorge *Greece – Vikos Gorge, Samaria Gorge *Greenland – Greenland's Grand Canyon *Iceland – Fjaðrárgljúfur, Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon *Kosovo – Rugova Canyon, White Drin Canyon, Kacanik Gorge *North Macedonia – Matka Canyon *Montenegro – Morača, Piva (river), Piva *Montenegro/Bosnia and Herzegovina – Tara River Canyon *Montenegro/Serbia – Ibar (river), Ibar *Norway – Sautso, Sautso Canyon *Poland/Slovakia – Dunajec River Gorge *Russia – Sulak Canyon, Dagestan *Serbia – Lazar's Canyon *Serbia/Bosnia and Herzegovina – Lim (river), Lim *Serbia/Romania – Iron Gates *Slovenia – Vintgar Gorge *Switzerland – Aare Gorge Jamison valley frm wentworth falls

Oceania

Australia

*Joffre Gorge, Karijini National Park, Western Australia *Katherine Gorge, Northern Territory *Kings Canyon (Northern Territory), Kings Canyon, Northern Territory *Murchison River Gorge, Western Australia *Jamison Valley, New South Wales *Capertee Valley, New South Wales – the world's second-widest canyon *Shoalhaven River, Shoalhaven Gorge, New South Wales *Werribee Gorge, Victoria (Australia), Victoria *The Slot canyon, Slot Canyons of the Blue Mountains (New South Wales), Blue Mountains, New South Wales

New Zealand

*Manawatū Gorge, North Island *Skippers Canyon, South Island

Solar System

*Ithaca Chasma on Saturn's moon Tethys (moon), Tethys *Valles Marineris on Mars, the largest-known canyon in the Solar System *Vid Flumina on Saturn's largest moon Titan (moon), Titan is the only known liquid-floored canyon in the Solar System besides Earth *Messina Chasmata on Uranus' moon Titania (moon), Titania Venus has many craters and canyons on its surface. The troughs on the planet are part of a system of canyons that is more than 6,400 km long.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Canyons and gorges, Slope landforms Landscape

Etymology

Formation

Box canyon

Largest

Cultural significance

Notable examples

Africa

Namibia

South Africa

Tanzania

Americas

Argentina

Brazil

Bolivia

Canada

Colombia

Mexico

Peru

United States

Asia

China

India

Indonesia

Others

Europe

United Kingdom

France

Ukraine

Others

Oceania

Australia

New Zealand

Solar System

See also

References

External links