plain: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

Oct. 14, 2026

Photos

Aerial view of patchwork fields on the Great Plains in North Dakota, showing cultivated farmland with green and golden brown sections stretching into the distance.

Mercury: double-ringed crater

False-colour perspective view of Sedna Planitia, one of the plains of Venus south of Ishtar Terra. The edge of a tessera is visible on the right. The crater on the far right is about 15 km (9.3 miles) in diameter. The image was created using data from the Magellan spacecraft.

See All Images →

Topics

planation surface African sequence etchplain peneplain pediment pediplain mountain glacier glacial landform continental landform valley coastal landforms Desert Grassland tectonic basins and rift valleys plateau

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Mercury: Plains