Crater Found, May Be From Disastrous Comet
Researchers have discovered a 300-mile-wide crater hidden under the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, the remnant of an asteroid impact that may have caused the largest mass extinction on Earth.
Ohio State University researchers reported at an American Geophysical Union meeting this week that the crater was probably caused by a comet nearly 30 miles wide. The impact occurred about 250 million years ago, during what is known as the Permian-Triassic extinction, when most of life on Earth died.
For the record:
12:00 a.m. June 8, 2006 For The Record
Los Angeles Times Thursday June 08, 2006 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 48 words Type of Material: Correction
Antarctic crater: A science brief in Saturday’s Section A about a 300-mile-wide crater found under the East Antarctic Ice Sheet used the terms asteroid and comet interchangeably. The crater was made by an asteroid, not a comet. The headline also said the crater was made by a comet.
