Several probes have visited Venus, providing images of what lies concealed under the dense cloud cover. Wide plains with some low-lying areas and highlands make up the surface of the planet.
Generally, Venus is much flatter than the Earth. Two larger highland ranges and volcanic plains stretch across the surface. With a few exceptions, all objects on Venus were given female names.
Ishtar Terra is a mountainous region the size of Australia. It has peaks the size of Mount Everest and a crater with a diameter of 100 kilometers, which was probably formed by a meteorite impact.
With a size similar to that of Africa, Aphrodite Terra is the largest plateau on Venus. A deep trench named Diana Chasma, which is up to 280 meters wide in places, runs through it. The Alpha Regio is a volcanic landscape of clefts and domes, which was created by streams of lava being pressed upwards.
The largest volcanoes of Venus are located in the Phoebe Regio. They are thought to have been active until quite recently. There are no small craters on the planet as small meteorites are vaporised in the highly dense atmosphere and never reach the surface.
Huge plains make up 70% of the surface of Venus, lowlands 20% and highlands 10%.
