Amateur's Google Maps find in Canada is now a confirmed 390-million-year-old impact crater
An amateur astronomer discovered a 15-mile-wide circular formation in Canada using Google Maps, which scientists have now confirmed as a 390-million-year-old meteor impact crater. Researchers verified the site by finding geological evidence such as shatter cones and impact melt rock.
Why it matters
This discovery demonstrates the role of citizen science and modern mapping technology in advancing geological research.
Researchers found shatter cones and impact melt rock, two hallmark signs of an ancient strike.
Scientists have confirmed the site of a massive ancient meteor impact after an amateur astronomer spotted a mysterious 15-mile-wide circular formation on Google Maps while planning a camping trip in northeastern Canada.
Scientists have since determined that the ring-shaped depression marks the site of a meteorite impact from about 390 million years ago.
According to Smithsonian Magazine , while using Google Maps to plot hiking routes for an upcoming camping trip, a strange land indentation caught the eye of Joël Lapointe. The formation immediately struck Lapointe as crater-like, though he doubted he had actually found an undiscovered one.
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