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The Conversation
The Conversation
Tim Johnson, Professor, Geology, Curtin University

Earth’s oldest impact crater was just found in Australia – exactly where geologists hoped it would be

Earth Pilbara Nature Communications Chris Kirkland Tim Johnson Western Australia
Shatter cones formed by the impact in the Pilbara. Tim Johnson

We have discovered the oldest meteorite impact crater on Earth, in the very heart of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The crater formed more than 3.5 billion years ago, making it the oldest known by more than a billion years. Our discovery is published today in Nature Communications.

Curiously enough, the crater was exactly where we had hoped it would be, and its discovery supports a theory about the birth of Earth’s first continents.

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