Have you heard of the Vredefort Crater or Vredefort Impact Structure? I came to know about it only very recently, while scrolling through various articles on the net. Thought it may be good to share with you all about the Vredefort Crater. It is estimated that about two million years ago, the Vredefort Crater was formed due to the impact of an Asteroid. The Asteroid was measuring nearly 10 kilometers across, which impacted Earth southwest of the present Free State province in South Africa.
How Vredefort Crater is formed
The impact of the Asteroid created a wide crater on the surface of earth, about 40kms deep and 100kms wide. The crater widened and shallowed after the impact as the rock below started to rebound and the walls collapsed. This is how the Vredefort Crater formed, which measures between 180kms and 300kms wide according to Scientists’ estimation. Due to the erosion over the period has made difficulty in estimating the exact size.
Vredefort Crater or the Vredefort Impact Structure is the largest verified Impact Structure on Earth. An Impact Structure is generally circular or craterlike geologic structure of deformed bedrock or sediment. It is produced by the impact on a Planetary surface. This crater is named as Vredefort Crater after the town of Vredefort which is near its centre. The structure’s central uplift is known as Vredefort Dome. The Vredefort Dome was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2005 for its geological interest. The dome was originally thought to have been formed by a Volcanic Explosion, which actually was the site of a huge bolide impact.
Read more about Vredefort Crater on these websites
Disclaimer:Published only for public awareness and collected from various sources.
