Meteor Crater, Arizona

Meteor Crater, Arizona
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meteor.jpg
Author: D. Roddy, U.S. Geological Survey


Meteor Crater, also called Barringer Crater, is a crater created by the impact of the meteorite hitting the earth. It is located about 43 miles (69 km) to the east of Flagstaff, near Winslow, in northern Arizona.

Meteor Crater measures 4,000 ft (1.2 km) in diameter. It is 570 ft (170 m) deep. It has a rim that protrudes 150 ft (40 m) above the natural surface. The crater has 700-800 feet (210-240 meters) of rubble above the bedrock.

Meteor Crater is believed to have been created by a meteorite some 50,000 years ago. At that time, the area was open grassland while mammals such as the woolly mammoths and giant ground sloths roamed. The composition of the meteorite was nickle and iron. It is believed to measure 54 years (50 meters) across, and was hurling through space at a few kilometers per second, probably 12.8 km per second. Even before the meteorite hit the ground, about half of its bulk of 300,000 metric tons (330,000 short tons) have already vaporized.

The impact was so great that much of the meteorite vaporized. Little of it remained in the crater that it created.

View from the rim of Meteor Crater
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barringer_Crater_USGS.jpg
Author: Deborah Lee Soltesz, USGS


The Meteor Crater was first discovered by European settlers in the 19th century, but the exact date is not remembered. The first geologist to study it was Grove Karl Gilbert from the U.S. Geological Survey, who investigated it in 1891.

In 1903, mining engineer Daniel M. Barringer, through his company, Standard Iron Company, received a patent signed by Theodore Roosevelt to conduct research on the crater. Working with his partner, mathematician Benjamin Chew Tilghman, Barringer presented his papers on the impact theory to the U.S. Geological Survey in 1906.

Today Meteor Crater is a popular tourist attraction in Arizona. It is privately owned by the Barringer family. An admission fee is charged for visiting the site. There is a visitor center on the north rim with information on the crater and details about meteorites and asteroids. There are other space-related exhibits including the American Astronaut Wall of Fame.

Rim guided tour to view the Meteor Crater
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barringer_Crater_Field_Trip.jpg
Author: Deborah Lee Soltesz, USGS

Visiting Meteor Crater, Arizona

Meteor Crater is about 20 miles (32 km) to the west of Winslow off Interstate 40 highway. To get there, take exit 233 then drive a further 6 miles south.

Meteor Crater is open to visitors from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm daily except on Christmas Day (Thanksgiving Day from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm). Admission fee to the site is now set at $15 for adults, $14 for seniors aged 60 and above, $8 for juniors aged 6-17, and free for children aged 5 and below.

The admission price includes views from three lookout points on the rim of Meteor Crater, visit to the Interactive Discovery Center, a documentary movie on "Collisions and Impacts", and if the weather permits, a guided rim tour over a 1/2 mile. Participants on the guided rim tour are required to wear fully enclosed shoes.

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