“Martian Butterfly” emerges as astronomers detail Mars’ most unusual crater

Mars still hides scenes that feel strangely familiar, and one new image now makes the Red Planet resemble a quiet garden visitor rather than a barren world. Could a crater truly look like a butterfly from above?

ESA image shows rare butterfly crater
The European Space Agency shared a striking Mars image. It shows a crater shaped like butterfly wings. The photograph came from the Mars Express orbiter. That mission has studied Mars since 2003. Why does this feature appear so unusual today?

The crater sits within the Idaeus Fossae region. That area lies in Mars’s northern lowlands. A space rock created the formation long ago. It hit the surface at a very shallow angle. That impact threw material north and south dramatically. Could this explain the two large wing-like lobes?

ESA says the main crater looks unusually oval. The wings appear irregular and lightly defined. They stretch towards the lower left and upper right. The crater measures nearly 20 kilometres east-west. It spans about 15 kilometres north-south. What can this structure reveal about Mars’s history?

Scientists study clues in Martian surface
Researchers say the crater offers fresh geological insight. It shows how angled impacts shape Martian ground. ESA notes fluidised material around the feature. That material may have mixed with water or ice. Could that mean volcanic or thermal activity occurred earlier?