Mars, named after Babylon

5 named features. The International Astronomical Union records why each name was chosen, and those reasons are printed below exactly as they were approved.

FEATURES · 5

NAME	TYPE	SIZE	WHY THAT NAME
Nirgal Vallis	valley	610 km	Word for "Mars" in Babylonian.
Hiddekel Rupes	rupes	313 km	Classical albedo feature name, Hiddekel.
Pallacopas Vallis	valley	134.8 km	Lowell canal name; also classical river name.
Hiddekel Cavus	cavus	23.3 km	Classical albedo feature name, Hiddekel.
Hiddekel	other	n/a	Tigris River, Babylonia; Biblical third River of Paradise.

Names and their origins come from the IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature (USGS Astrogeology), retrieved 2026-08-14.
All named features ｜ KUON MARS map ｜ About the map ｜ The temperature on Mars ｜ How far away Mars is

DATA: IAU / USGS Astrogeology · NASA MGS MOLA · NASA Mars Odyssey THEMIS