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Articles on Craters

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Astronomers can estimate ages for stars outside the Solar System, but not planets. Corbis Historical via Getty Images

How do astronomers know the age of the planets and stars?

Measuring the ages of planets and stars is tricky. An observational astrophysicist describes the subtle clues that provide good estimates for how old different space objects are.
An illustration shows how, about 65 million years ago, a large asteroid collided with Earth. It hit what is today Mexico and created the Chicxulub crater. Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images

Curious Kids: Why are there so few impact craters on Earth?

Impact craters are relatively shallow, so these bowl-shaped “dents” in Earth’s rocky crust can be easily buried or erased by erosion.
The ancient landscape at Yarrabubba preserves traces of the world’s oldest known asteroid impact. Shutterstock

We found the world’s oldest asteroid strike in Western Australia. It might have triggered a global thaw

The Yarrabubba asteroid landed 2.2 billion years ago. Around the same time, the icy Earth went through a big thaw.
Look at the circular patterns on the Moon’s surface, as seen from Earth. Flickr/Bob Familiar

Why the Moon is such a cratered place

The Apollo missions to the Moon helped our understanding of the cosmic origin of craters on our lunar neighbour, and here on Earth.
The village of Agoudal in Morocco’s High Atlas Mountains is home to a rare treasure. Mohamed Aoudjehane

What a Moroccan crater reveals about a rare double whammy from the skies

High in the mountains of Morocco, scientists have discovered something remarkable and rare: a spot that was struck by two meteorites, possibly millions of years apart.

Moon may harbour alien minerals

Minerals in moon craters may be remnants of asteroids that slammed into it and not the satellite’s innards, as long believed…

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