DHALA CRATER

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Context

The Dhala crater, an impact structure located in the Madhya Pradesh region of India.

Details

• Earth has encountered numerous extraterrestrial bodies over its 4.5 billion years of existence.
• Some impacts have left significant marks on our planet, leading to major events like the extinction of dinosaurs.
• India has three meteor impact craters: Ramgarh, Lonar, and Dhala.
• The Dhala crater, located in Madhya Pradesh, has recently gained attention as Asia's largest and the world's seventh-largest impact crater.

Discovery of Dhala Crater

• Dhala crater has a diameter of 11 kilometers.
• Scientists from Allahabad University and the University of Bern, Switzerland, confirmed that the crater resulted from the collision of a rare and ancient meteorite known as Ureilite.
• The impact occurred approximately 2500-1700 million years ago.

Ureilite Meteorites

• Ureilites belong to a scarce class of primitive meteorites, making up only a small fraction of all meteorites found on Earth.
• They mainly consist of olivine and pyroxene silicate rocks.
• Ureilites contain less than 10% carbon in the form of diamond or graphite, metal sulphides, and a few fine-grained silicates.

Dhala Impact Formation

• A one-kilometer-wide Ureilite meteorite entered Earth's atmosphere at an extraordinary speed of 15 km/s.
• The meteorite collided with the granitoid rocks of the Bundelkhand craton, creating the Dhala impact structure.

Significance of Dhala Crater Study

• The discovery of the impactor material provides insight into our early solar system.
• Future research aims to understand the role of the Dhala crater in bringing water to Earth and contributing to the development of life on our planet.

PRACTICE QUESTION Q) Discuss the scientific significance of the Dhala Crater and its potential implications for understanding the early solar system and Earth's history. (150 words)

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