2009_09_25 Manicouagan Lake and Crater

I finally got to see Lac (in English, Lake) Manicouagan, while flying across northern Quebec en route from London to Chicago. The lake (enlarged as a reservoir to produce hydroelectric power) marks the largest clearly visible impact crater on Earth. Sixty-five miles across, it was formed around 215 million years ago, in Triassic time, and is associated (along with other impacts of about the same age — all or some of which may have occurred as part of a series of from a fleet of incoming asteroids (or asteroid parts). Only three of Earth's known impact craters are larger, and none are so obvious. (In fact they're pretty much invisible.) I was sitting on the back side of the wing for these shots, and it was hard to get a good angle on the whole thing, which is just too large for one shot. At least with my camera and seat.

23 photos | 164 views

items are from 25 Sep 2009.