Australia's Meteorite Craters

On Earth the catastrophic impact of an asteroid or comet has truly global consequences, but it has not occurred in recorded history. Giant scars on our planet's surface are relics of an impact history stretching back more than two billion years and, although a remote possibility, there is no assurance it cannot happen again.In Australia there are thirty-six crater-shaped structures, ranging from tens of metres to tens of kilometres in diameter, which are recognised to varying degrees of certainty as having been formed by giant meteorite impact. What we call small craters might still be five kilometres across, and the small asteroids that formed them would have been about 500 metres wide and travelling at about 55,000 kilometres an hour!Beginning with ancient beliefs and myths about craters, Australia's Meteorite Craters explains how craters are actually formed, describes their structure and location, and assesses the likelihood of future impacts and their possible effects.