Huge Impact Crater Found in Remote Congo (makes # 182 known)

Expedition confirms a meteor hit central Africa millions of years ago.

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/4b96fc8ffd59.jpg[/atsimg]
A computer model of the Luizi crater based on satellite data.

A circular depression deep in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been confirmed as the first known impact crater in central Africa, a new study says. The find brings the number of known meteor craters on Earth to 182.

The so-called Luizi structure was first described in a German geological report from 1919. But without further fieldwork, it was impossible to say for sure that the 10.5-mile-wide (17-kilometer-wide) feature had been made by a meteor impact.

the crater-like structures we do see may have been made by volcanoes, collapsed underground chambers, and other forces that have nothing to do with impacts, said study leader Ludovic Ferrière, curator of the rock collection at the Natural History Museum of Vienna in Austria. "On Earth, to confirm it's an impact, you have to go in the field because you need evidence of high pressures and temperatures," Ferrière said.

Ferrière's team spent about a week at the crater collecting samples, which were sent back to the lab in Canada for analysis. "I found so-called shatter cones, which are features in the rock only found in impact structures," he said. The nested, conical shapes in such features are evidence that the bedrock has been exposed to extreme pressure from a shock wave. The crater rocks also contained an abundance of shocked quartz, a version of the mineral known to form only from impacts or nuclear blasts, Ferrière said.

The scientists think the Luizi crater was made by a meteor more than 0.6 mile (a kilometer) wide that slammed into what is now the DRC at about 45,000 miles (72,000 kilometers) an hour. For now it's unclear how old the crater is—the scientists can say only that the affected rocks are about 575 million years old, "but we know it's younger than that, because the rocks have been excavated," Ferrière said.

Source: news.nationalgeographic.com...

More great stuff about our past. This puppy was a big one. Maybe it wiped out one of the human races that may have been thriving in that region then. Sure add some credibility to the whole migrated out of Africa theory.
Beatin' feet to get the hell away from all of that destruction.

I am sure the latest find in what will more to follow. I bet the earth is covered with them-we just can't see them or don't recognize them.

And, going down this path... if Aliens do exist. Maybe then did inhabit the earth at one time but some like this event drove them from earth... they are just checking back now?

Interesting find. Humans were not around at the time of impact however.

reply to post by starshift


Hmmm, so says you. I am one that believes many of races (humanoid) have inhabited the earth over the millions of years.

We are just the current occupants.

It would be amazing if found that ALL impacts on various planets & STARS, were landings from unknowns???

Nope no craft left for evidenta'

reply to post by Ophiuchus 13


Wouldn't that be the Cat's meow!! actually finding a huge piece of a craft! I think we are ready for
the news... Aliens exist.

Or whatever they are.

reply to post by anon72


I think we are ready as well.

Originally posted by starshift
Interesting find. Humans were not around at the time of impact however.

You think so? All over the world new discoveries of archeological artifacts are being made that pushes our existance on this planet much further back into time than ever thought possible.

This site contains 100's of instances of objects being found that suggest our existance could go back 100's of thousands of years and beyond!.

reply to post by Freelancer


Thnnks for the site info. Can't wait to dive into that later tonight.

Look like some good stuff!!!!