Geologists Discover Massive Structure Buried Beneath Southern New South Wales, Australia. This could be the trace of an extraterrestrial object that once visited Earth.
According to The Conversation, geologist Andrew Glikson from the Australian National University (ANU) School of Archaeology and Anthropology and his colleagues have announced a new structure called Deniliquin. This is the latest research from this expert and his colleague Tony Yeates.
Experts estimate that the Deniliquin structure has a diameter of up to 520 km. This figure far exceeds the size of the world record impact structure Vredefort in South Africa, which has a diameter of nearly 300 km. It also surpasses the size of the Chicxulub impact crater (almost three times larger) – the event that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.
In the past, the continent of Australia and the precursor continent of the supercontinent Gondwana were the targets of many collisions with asteroids. According to experts, Deniliquin lies beneath New South Wales after being buried over time by erosion and tectonic activity…
Simulation of asteroid impact with Earth. (Image: iStock).
However, the geologist’s research, based on magnetic models beneath the Murray River basin in New South Wales, revealed an anomaly in the shape of a massive buried impact structure.
An analysis of geophysical data in this area collected from 2015 to 2020 identified the existence of the impact structure with a diameter of 520 km, where deformation occurs at a depth of 30 km above a cover layer dome.
Furthermore, magnetic measurements indicate evidence of fracture lines radiating from the center of a large impact structure. Through magnetic anomalies, experts discovered magma pushing into deep underground fissures also revealed itself.
After analyzing the data, Dr. Andrew Glikson and his colleagues estimate that the Deniliquin structure could have been formed in eastern Gondwana at the end of the Ordovician period. (Image: The Conversation)
The signs above are similar to what led to the discovery of Vredefort in South Africa and a similar impact structure named Sudbury in Canada.
This extraterrestrial impact occurred over 3.2 billion years ago. It is considered a tumultuous early phase that Earth had to endure, with numerous continuous attacks from cosmic objects.
Most evidence of Deniliquin, the traces of asteroid impacts on Earth, is based on geophysical data obtained from the surface. Therefore, to obtain accurate evidence regarding the age of Deniliquin, Dr. Glikson and his colleague Tony Yeates need to drill deep into this massive impact structure.
The “Scar” of Earth 2 Billion Years Ago
Although eroded almost entirely, the Vredefort impact crater still shows the significant impact of the asteroid collision 2 billion years ago. (Image: NASA).
2 billion years ago, an asteroid with a diameter of 25 km crashed into Earth, creating the Vredefort Crater located near Johannesburg, South Africa. At the time of the collision, Earth was inhabited only by single-celled organisms, and woody plants had not yet evolved. According to scientists, immediately after the impact, the estimated size of the crater was 250 – 280 km.
According to research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets at the end of September 2022, scientists pointed out that because there were not many living organisms 2 billion years ago, the Vredefort impact did not cause a mass extinction event like Chicxulub. However, it significantly impacted the global climate.
Specifically, experts found that a large amount of dust disturbed by the impact could obscure the Sun for many hours or even decades. This would cause a significant drop in Earth’s surface temperature. Once this dust settled, the CO2 released from the impact would cause Earth’s temperatures to rise by several degrees.
The Impact 1.8 Billion Years Ago
The Sudbury Basin formed from an object impacting Earth about 1.8 billion years ago. (Image: NASA)
Like Vredefort, the Sudbury Basin in Ontario, Canada, is one of the oldest impact structures known on Earth. According to NASA, experts believe that an asteroid impact created this “bowl”.
However, subsequent research published in Terra Nova suggested that a giant comet or a mix of asteroid fragments and ice was the real cause of the Sudbury formation. This object impacted Earth approximately 1.8 billion years ago.
The impact punctured Earth’s crust, causing material from the mantle to surge from below. Humans have been utilizing minerals from the Sudbury Basin for thousands of years, with large-scale mining activities commencing in the late 1800s.
The Impact that Led to the Extinction of Dinosaurs
Simulation of the Chicxulub asteroid causing the mass extinction event on Earth 66 million years ago. (Image: Phys)
About 66 million years ago, an asteroid named Chicxulub, larger than Mount Everest, struck Earth near the Yucatán Peninsula, wiping out 75% of life on the blue planet, including the dinosaurs. According to researchers, when it struck Earth, this asteroid released energy equivalent to 10 billion atomic bombs like those in Hiroshima, leaving a “landing site” over 180 km wide.
New research published in the Nature Geoscience journal at the end of October 2023 indicates that the Chicxulub asteroid, with an estimated diameter of 10 km, crushed rocks into dust that obscured the sky, blocking photosynthesis and leading to the extinction of many plant species and dinosaurs.
