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Inplanetary geology,rupes (/ˈruːpɪs/, plural:/ˈruːpiːz/)[1] areescarpments onplanets other thanEarth.
As of January 2013[update], theIAU has named 62 such features in theSolar System, onMercury (17),Venus (7), theMoon (8),Mars (23), the asteroidsVesta (2) andLutetia (2), and Uranus's satellitesMiranda (2) andTitania (1).[2][failed verification]
How rupes formed is, as of 2008[update], a matter of speculation. Compressionalstrain from the cooling of the crust ofterrestrial planets and large-scale displacement due to impacts are the two dominant theories.[3]
The term "rupes" comes from theLatin word for "cliff."
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