Ohio State University scientists have discovered a possible meteor impact crater beneath the ice of East Antarctica in the Wilkes Land area. Gravity measurements suggest that the impact forming this crater occurred about 250 million years ago - about the same time as the Permian-Triassic Extinction - the most significant extinction in Earth's history that wiped out most plant and animal species.
This crater is approximately 300 miles wide (twice as wide as the Chicxulub Crater that is often credited as killing the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago) and is hidden beneath over one mile of ice. It is possible that the force of this impact triggered the break-up of the Gondwana Supercontinent.
The crater was identified using gravity and radar data. The first image below shows GRACE-measured gravity fluctuations beneath East Antarctica. Denser regions appear more red; the location of the Wilkes Land crater is circled. The bottom is an airborne radar image of land elevation in East Antarctica . Higher elevations appear red, purple, and white; the raised rim of the crater is circled. An inset of the Chicxulub crater is included for size comparison.
Image courtesy of Ohio State University.
Image courtesy of Ohio State University.Read more about the
Antarctic Meteor Crater at the Ohio State University website.
Labels: Arctic-Antarctic, Meteor-Meteorite
