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Kamil Crater (Egypt): Ground truth for small-scale meteorite impacts on Earth

Folco, L., Di Martino, M., El Barkooky, A., D'Orazio, M., Lethy, A., Urbini, S., Nicolosi, I., Hafez, M., Cordier, C., van Ginneken, M., and others. (2011) Kamil Crater (Egypt): Ground truth for small-scale meteorite impacts on Earth. Geology, 39 (2). pp. 179-182. ISSN 0091-7613. E-ISSN 1943-2682. (doi:10.1130/G31624.1) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:88123)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
https://doi.org/10.1130/G31624.1

Abstract

Small impact craters (<300 m in diameter) are rare on Earth and mostly deeply eroded, so that knowledge of their formation mechanism and the hazard small impactors constitute to human populations is largely based on physical models. We report on the geophysical investigation of the Kamil Crater we recently discovered in southern Egypt. The Kamil Crater is a <5 k.y. old impact crater 45 m in diameter, with a pristine ejecta ray structure. Such well-preserved structures have been previously observed only on extraterrestrial rocky or icy planetary bodies. This crater feature, and the association with an iron meteorite impactor and shock metamorphism, provides a unique impression of aspects of small-scale hypervelocity impacts on the Earth's crust. Contrary to current models, ground data indicate that iron meteorites with masses of tens of tons may be able to penetrate the atmosphere without substantial fragmentation.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1130/G31624.1
Uncontrolled keywords: Africa; digital terrain models; Egypt; ejecta; geomorphology; geophysical surveys; ground truth; hypervelocity impacts; impact craters; impact features; impacts; iron meteorites; metamorphism; meteorites; new names; nomenclature; North Africa; scale factor; shock metamorphism; surveys; topography; Kamil Crater; Gebel Kamil Meteorite
Subjects: Q Science > QB Astronomy > QB651 Planets, Minor
Q Science > QE Geology > QE515 Geochemistry
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Natural Sciences > Physics and Astronomy
Funders: Ministero degli Affari Esteri (https://ror.org/02jkm3388)
Depositing User: Matthias van Ginneken
Date Deposited: 14 May 2021 10:04 UTC
Last Modified: 21 Sep 2022 15:46 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/88123 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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