“This is by far the oldest crater on earth”

The impact crater arises as a result of a meteorite impact, planetoids or comet. A team of geologists from Curtin University discovered the oldest such creation in the Pilbara region in the west of Australia. According to scientists, the shock crater measures at least 100 kilometers wide and was created about 3.47 billion years ago, when our planet was almost completely covered with water. – The oldest long -known striking crater – (Yarrabubba – was 2.2 billion years old, so this is by far the oldest known crater found on earth – said Professor Tim Johnson, the author of the publication, which recently appeared in the magazine “Nature Communications”.

Scientists have discovered it thanks to crash cones – characteristic rock formations, which arise only under the influence of a huge pressure emerging during a meteorite impact. The cones in the area located about 40 kilometers west of Marble Bar in the Pilbar region were created as a result of a hit of a meteorite at a speed of over 36,000 kilometers per hour. This event scattered his remains throughout the planet. “We know that powerful blows were common in an early solar system, which can be seen when analyzing the surface of the moon,” said Johnson. – The earlier lack of known really old craters resulted from the fact that they were largely ignored by geologists. This study provides a key element of the puzzle on the history of strokes on Earth and suggests that in the future many other former craters may be discovered – he emphasized.

According to researchers, the discovery changes the look at how meteorites shaped the surface of the earth.

– The discovery of this crater and finding more, from the same period can explain a lot about how life could have arisen on earth. Shock craters created environments conducive to the life of microorganisms, such as hot springs – explained prof. Chris Kirkland, one of the authors of the publication.

– This discovery also radically changes our understanding of the formation of the earth's crust, a huge amount of energy released during this impact could play a role in shaping the early earth's crust (…). It is possible that the impact also had an impact on the creation of crowds – large, stable land masses, which became the foundation of continents – emphasized the expert.