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Article: Big splash from an ancient fall. (underwater crater off Nova Scotia caused by fall of extraterrestrial body 50 million years ago)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- June 27, 1987
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1987 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Big Splash From an Ancient Fall
It has been 50 million years since anextraterrestrial body landed in the ocean off the Nova Scotia coast, but the crater left over from this impact is currently making a big splash among scientists. The crater is the first such structure ever identified in the ocean, reports a pair of Canadian geologists. Moreover, its identification may help scientists who are trying to determine whether an earlier impact led to the extinctions of the dinosaurs.
Hundreds of known craters on landrecord the impact of meteorites, asteroids or even comet nuclei. Scientists have posited that many more bodies must have fallen into the ocean, ...