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By wadis formed structure "Kebira"
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LARGEST CRATER IN THE GREAT SAHARA DISCOVERED
BY BOSTON UNIVERSITY SCIENTISTS
Researchers from BU’s Center for Remote Sensing locate crater
using detailed satellite data
(Boston, March 3, 2006) – Researchers
from Boston University have discovered the remnants of the largest crater of
the Great Sahara of North Africa, which may have been formed by a meteorite impact
tens of millions of years ago. Dr. Farouk El-Baz made the discovery while studying
satellite images of the Western Desert of Egypt with his colleague, Dr. Eman
Ghoneim, at BU's Center for Remote Sensing.
The double-ringed crater – which has an outer rim surrounding an inner ring –
is approximately 31 kilometers in diameter. Prior to the latest finding, the
Sahara's biggest known crater, in Chad, measured just over 12 kilometers. According
to El-Baz, the Center's director, the crater’s vast area suggests the location
may have been hit by a meteorite the entire size of the famous Meteor (Barringer)
Crater in Arizona which is 1.2 kilometers wide.
El-Baz named his find “Kebira,” which means “large” in Arabic and also relates
to the crater’s physical location on the northern tip of the Gilf Kebir region
in southwestern Egypt. The reason why a crater this big had never been found
before is something the scientists are speculating.
Source: http://www.bu.edu/remotesensing/News/kebira/index.html
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