Google Earth Finds Meteor Crater in Egypt
With the help of Google Earth, the Kamil Crater was found in the border region of Egypt, Sudan and Libya. The Kamil Crater is 50 feet deep and 150 feet wide, and is one of the most well preserved sites ever found.
According to the Telegraph, scientists believe that the Kamil Crater is only a few thousand years old.
“The crater is certainly less than ten thousand years old and potentially less than a few thousand, said Dr. Detlef Koschny. “The impact may even have been observed by humans, and archaeological investigations at nearby ancient settlements may help fix the date.”
The crater was discovered by Google Earth in 2008, but it wasn’t until February of this year that scientists were able to examine the Kamil Crater more closely.
The National Institute of Astrophysics believe that the meteor, which weighed about ten tons, was traveling at more than 7,500 mph when it struck the earth.
According to the European Space Agency, the expedition to investigate the Kamil crater will help the world prepare for future meteor impacts.
“The data gathered during the expedition will be very useful to ESA’s Space Situational Awareness program’s activities for risk assessment of small asteroids with orbits that approach Earth.”
