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Virtual Vista: Barringer (Meteor) Crater, Arizona, USA

The final Virtual Vista is a fitting one to illustrate the fragility of Earth's environments. The animation and fly-by included in this Virtual Vista illustrate the timing and effects of a relatively small impact event on Earth's surface.

The images on this page are of the Barringer Crater (also known as Meteor Crater) near Winslow, Arizona, USA. The crater was excavated by the impact of a small (approximately 100 m diameter) iron meteorite about 50,000 years ago.

<a onClick="window.open('/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=jpg::::/sites/dl/free/0077373731/90804/MeteorCrater01.jpg','popWin', 'width=357,height=282,resizable,scrollbars');" href="#"><img valign="absmiddle" height="16" width="16" border="0" src="/olcweb/styles/shared/linkicons/image.gif"> (113.0K)</a>

At the time of the impact event, Arizona's climate and ecology were quite different than they are today. North America was in the midst of a glacial stage, and Arizona's climate was cooler and wetter than now. Rather than desert scrub, much of the area was colonized by coniferous forest. Following the impact event, the forest and most other living organisms were destroyed for several tens of kilometers outward from "ground zero".

<a onClick="window.open('/olcweb/cgi/pluginpop.cgi?it=jpg::Meteor Crater view looking north::/sites/dl/free/0077373731/90804/MeteorCrater02.jpg','popWin', 'width=462,height=344,resizable,scrollbars');" href="#"><img valign="absmiddle" height="16" width="16" border="0" src="/olcweb/styles/shared/linkicons/image.gif">Meteor Crater view looking north (40.0K)</a>Meteor Crater view looking north

This Virtual Vista was created by developing an animation of a simulated meteor passing over a pine forest, then merging this animation with a fly-by over a digital elevation model (DEM) and digital aerial image of the crater area.

Points to Ponder:

1. How much energy do you think was liberated by this impact?
2. What is the likelihood of a similar impact occurring somewhere on Earth during your lifetime?

Click on the link below to view the animation.

Meteor Crater Fly-By (2398.0K)

To learn more about the Barringer Crater, visit their website by following the hyperlink below.

Barringer Crater

Having trouble loading or viewing the video clip? You will need the DivX video codec for your media player to watch the video. The DivX codec is available free from www.divx.com. Click on the link or type the URL into your browser to go to the DivX download site. Once at the DivX site, follow the "DOWNLOAD" links until you locate the download "Standard DivX Codec (FREE)" hyperlink. Click on the link and download the small DivX codec file. The codec file may take a few minutes to load. Please be patient. Once the file is downloaded to your local computer, double click on the file to automatically install the Divx codec.

You may also discover that the Virtual Vistas work best with the Windows Media Player, available as a free download from www.microsoft.com. Click on the link or type the URL into your browser to go to the Microsoft web site. Once at the web site, type "windows media player" into the Search box, then click on the appropriate link to download the latest version of Windows Media Player.






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