« Blue Marble - Google Earth Generation | Main | Storm Tracking Tools - Hurricane Wilma »
October 18, 2005
Meteor Craters on Earth
Over the last few millions of years the Earth has had quite a few impacts from meteors, asteroids, and maybe even peices of comets. Scientists have confirmed 172 locations on the Earth determined to be "impact structures". In fact, the leading theory for the mass extinction of many animals, including the dinosaurs, 65.5 million years ago was an impact crater known as the "Chicxulub crater". These locations have been documented in a database available at the Earth Impact Database.
Thinklemon.com has taken the Impact Database and created Google Earth network links (he gets extra points for this) which not only shows the location of the 172 impacts, but shows a size indicator for the larger ones and provides links to Wikipedia articles and other information in the descriptions. He has organized the list by major continents and also includes a list of the top 25. Here is his announcement with his links, or you can download the entire collection 
now. This is a very nice collection, and since I have a degree in astronomy myself, I just had to write about this. Great job Caspar!
By the way, a good friend of mine has spent over 20 years as an astronomer helping to find near-Earth objects which may someday strike the Earth. He works at the Spacewatch Project at the University of Arizona. If anyone with lots of funding is looking to help us make plans to avoid a major future impact, Spacewatch would be a good project to fund.
Posted by FrankTaylor at October 18, 2005 08:45 AM
Comments
Posted by: Caspar at October 19, 2005 08:06 PM
Hey! Landed here all by luck. Just to tell you that I live within the worlds oldest (if not largest) impact site and have done so since 1876.
There is a lot of talk recently about the South African Govt granting miningrights to a certain company to do open exploration mining within, what we call, The Dome. That would be the begining of the end of Vredefortdome ....
So, if there might be people to be asked, point your scopes on the Vredefortdome and help preventing destruction. (One small area has been proclaimed "World Heritage" but we feel that this was done to sooth the anger against possible destruction of the rest of the Dome)
You can find my location @ S027.12.155 E027.35.477
Happy landing!
zac
Posted by: zac at November 17, 2006 06:17 AM
on google earth there is a listing that Hudson Bay, Canada, might be a crater, had this been confirmed or rubbished?
Posted by: Jake at February 18, 2007 09:36 AM
I have found a crater not listed how should I get it listed "impact crater 3" lat=-22.6810815131, lon=133.531999688
See what you think?
Posted by: Jake at February 19, 2007 06:12 AM
I have been looking at the Craters in Russia and the one's in Europe are labled as Asia. Id fix this but I dont know how.
Posted by: Peter at March 20, 2007 10:29 AM
Have you ever heard of the "Little Creek Structure" in LaSalle Parish, Louisiana? It is not a confirmed impact crater, but there is some compelling evidence.
Here is a link to a website with some information on the subject. The author is a well respected Louisiana State geologist.
http://www.searchanddiscovery.net/documents/echols/index.htm
Posted by: jkull at April 30, 2007 09:52 AM
I have found a 130+ kilometer impact crater May 26,2007 at 27d N x 107dW in Western Mexico, and nearby smaller craters as well. Calling the big one Crater del Tortuga Jorge. My conjecture is that Chicxulub wasn't alone.
Posted by: Tortuga Jorge at May 28, 2007 08:01 PM
hello anyone there?
Posted by: Kaki's Dad at August 19, 2007 04:25 PM
Yes, looking with interest as a 'newbie'. Looking for Chinese craters. So few are listed in the big lists. So looking at something like 38"16'N/88"9'E, any thoughts on this? It's round, seems impossibly placed for man-made, volcanic, or any other shape. Feel free to write at Randall_Higgins at hotmail.com
Posted by: Randy at September 17, 2007 08:43 AM
I have just played around looing at my state in NH and found this
LAT 43° 6'35.88"N
LON 71°11'22.42"W
And this right north of NH in Quebec
LAT 45°27'1.97"N
LON 71° 9'49.75"W
A few others but it may be my imagination like this one in NH. kinda looks like it could be a REALLY old where most of it is filling in. use the water and the tree outline and you will see a circle. I am sure I am pushing it with this one.
LAT 42°52'6.35"N
LON 71°12'3.85"W
Posted by: Sean Mathews at September 25, 2007 03:24 PM
I have just played around looing at my state in NH and found this
LAT 43° 6'35.88"N
LON 71°11'22.42"W
And this right north of NH in Quebec
LAT 45°27'1.97"N
LON 71° 9'49.75"W
A few others but it may be my imagination like this one in NH. kinda looks like it could be a REALLY old where most of it is filling in. use the water and the tree outline and you will see a circle. I am sure I am pushing it with this one.
LAT 42°52'6.35"N
LON 71°12'3.85"W
Posted by: Sean Mathews at September 25, 2007 03:24 PM
If the arc in the east side of Hudson Bay is an impact, and it sure looks like it is, it would be about 270 miles across (435KM) thhats the mother of all the known craters - -
Posted by: William stengel at December 8, 2007 06:12 PM
Yes looking at the 2 possible spots above Boston, near Manchester, one definitely looks like a crater. The older one could also be one. Time and exploring will tell.
The one above Alice Springs in Australia also looks like one. Hopefully I will be adventure bike riding right there later this year. There is another strange 'ring' at 20 40'17.8 S 127 28'56.22 E but may be water depression as a bulldozed track runs right through it.
I couldn’t find the ones in western Mexico.
Posted by: Malcolm at January 16, 2008 05:37 AM
I think I found something.It looks like two craters.It's in Central Europe near village Darmysl, Czech Republic.Check it out on google maps or yahoo.
Posted by: Petr at January 19, 2008 09:45 PM
Post a comment:
NOTE: Please use English. Comments are moderated.
Thanks!
But I must mention there's a size indicator for every 'crater' available. Some are so small you need to zoom in to make the 'impact icon' smaller than the indicator... (Double-click on the folder helps.)
There is one flaw though. The smaller the crater the more off it is. The data I pulled this off isn't accurate enough. So this needs some tweaking. Besides this, I plan to make a 'humanly/humanoid witnessable collection' and 'the oldest' KML. but more on that later.
Again, feedback is welcome.
BTW: Do you have data on 'super-volcanoes'? Size & Lat./Lon.