Alba Mons Alba Mons Alba Mons (formerly known as Alba Patera, a term that has since been restricted to the volcano's summit caldera) is an immense, low-lying volcano located in the northern Tharsis region of the planet Mars. It is the largest volcano on Mars in terms of area, with volcanic flow fields that extend for at least from its summit. Although the volcano has a span comparable to that of the United States, it reaches an elevation of only at its highest point. This is about one-third the height of Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano on the planet. The flanks of
Minor planet more are discovered each month. The Minor Planet Center has documented over 188 million observations and 757,626 minor planets, of which 516,386 have orbits known well enough to be assigned permanent official numbers. Of these, 21,264 have official names. , the lowest-numbered unnamed minor planet is , and the highest-numbered named minor planet is 495759 Jandesselberger. There are various broad minor-planet populations: All astronomical bodies in the Solar System need a distinct designation. The naming of minor planets runs through a three-step process. First, a provisional designation is given upon discovery—because the object still may turn out to be a