Why impact craters are rare on planet Earth?
IMPACT CRATERS – Here’s the definition of this phenomenon and why they are rare on Earth.
Have you ever wondered what usually happens when an asteroid hits the surface of the Earth?
Well, in case you do not know, when a meteoroid, asteroid, or comet crashes into a planet or a moon, impact craters are formed.
It creates a circular depression in the surface of a planet, moon, or other solid body in the Solar System.
There are at least 190 impact craters that have been recorded so far.
Among those is Barringer Crater in Arizona, US which has a diameter of 0.8 miles (1,300 meters) and a depth of 570 feet (174 meters).
Maharashtra in India also houses the Lonar Crater which has a diameter of 6,000 feet (1,830 meters) and depth of 500 feet (150 meters).
Next in line is the Wolfe Creek Crater in Western Australia which has a diameter of about 2890 ft (880 meters) and a depth of 196 ft (60 meters).
Also in Australia particularly in Northern Territory, an impact crater called Gosses Bluff (Tnorala) is located. It has a diameter originally around 13.6 miles (22 km), now 2.7 miles (4.5 km), and a depth originally of 3 miles (5 km).
On the other hand, Quebec, Canada is the home of Pingualuit Crater which has a diameter of 2.1 miles (3.4 km) and a depth of 876 feet (267 meters).
While Kaali Crater Field is located in Kaali, Estonia which has a diameter of 360 ft (110 meters) and depth of 72 ft (22 meters), and so on and so forth.
But what do you think this phenomenon is rare on Earth?
According to Windows to the Universe, there are two main reasons why impact craters are rare on Earth.
First, the atmosphere burns up most meteoroids before they reach the surface. Aside from that, the Earth’s surface is continually active and erases the marks of craters over time.
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