Possibly the best-known meteorite impact on Earth is the one that left the largely buried Chicxulub impact structure on the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico. This 180km diameter crater is the second largest on Earth and has been dated to 66 million years ago – coincidental with the extinction of the dinosaurs.
The youngest impact crater on Earth is Carancas impact crater in Peru – this 13.5 m wide crater formed in the 15th September 2007. The largest impact crater in modern times (last centuries) could be Wabar craters (Saudi Arabia) – the largest crater is 116 m wide. Most likely these craters formed in September 1704.
The Chicxulub Crater and the Demise of the Dinosaurs In 1987, scientists discovered one of the largest impact craters on Earth at the tip of the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. This giant crater, measuring more than 200 miles wide, was produced by a meteorite that blasted away rock from the Earth's crust over 65 million years ago.It is estimated that this crater was formed over two billion years ago when a meteorite that most probably measured about 10 km in diameter collided with Earth. It is located approximately 120 km
There are several reasons for this. First, meteorites slow down or even burn out in our atmosphere before they can reach the surface. Second, 70% of Earth is covered with water—we can only see
2. Chicxulub, Yucatán, Mexico The dinosaur killer! Possibly the best-known meteorite impact on Earth is the one that left the largely buried Chicxulub impact structure on the Yucatán peninsula FdoGZS2.