Astronomer Surdin proposes 10-km-deep Martian canyon for landing site

Russian astronomer Vladimir Surdin has identified a 10-kilometer-deep Martian canyon as a promising landing site for future human missions, citing its potential to shield astronauts from radiation. The canyon, deep enough to conceal Mount Everest, offers denser atmosphere for softer parachute landings and could protect crews from radiation exposure, which on a Mars flight would reach 80 rem, 16 times the annual limit for nuclear plant workers. Surdin noted such ravines may hold frozen water remnants from ancient rivers, usable for domestic needs after purification, with water now existing as polar ice or permafrost.