Orcus Patera is an enigmatic elliptical depression located between the volcanoes of Elysium Mons and Olympus Mons. This well-defined depression extends approximately 380 km by 140 km in a NNE–SSW direction. It has a rim that rises up to 1800 m above the surrounding plains, while the floor of the depression lies 400–600 m below the surroundings. The High-Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC), on ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft obtained image data in the Orcus Patera region on 5 and 11 October 2005. The data were acquired during orbits 2216 and 2238 and this image was derived from the HRSC nadir channel, which provides the highest detail of all the channels.