Geological Chronicle
Vallis Alpes bisects the Montes Alpes range, extending from the Mare Imbrium basin toward the edge of Mare Frigoris. Constricted at both ends, the valley broadens along its middle stretch to a maximum width of about 10 kilometers.
The valley floor is a flat, lava-flooded surface bisected by a slender, cleft-like rille that spans 196.65 kilometers in length, exceeding the valley proper while measuring 0.58 kilometers wide and 77.69 meters deep.
The valley is most likely a graben later flooded with magma, though stress fractures from mantle expansion, regolith cooling, or the Imbrium impact event may have contributed. Francesco Bianchini discovered the valley in 1727, and the International Astronomical Union confirmed its name in 1961.