Santa Fe Crater Shattercone. Impact Site Shattercone . Santa Fe County, New Mexico, USA - (35° 43' 35" N, 105° 56' 27"...

Description

Santa Fe Crater Shattercone
Impact Site Shattercone
Santa Fe County, New Mexico, USA - (35° 43' 35" N, 105° 56' 27" W)
Discovered: 2005

This rather odd-looking specimen, which resembles a rough piece of Petrified Wood, is actually a piece of shatter cone - a rare geological feature only known to form in the bedrock beneath a meteorite impact crater. Evidencing rock that has been subjected to extreme shock, such remnants boast a conical shape and are a most unique "impact structure" dating back some 1.5 billion years ago, when the site in Santa Fe, New Mexico, was vaporized by a giant meteor. The impact shocked and melted rock deep below the impact site. The discovery of the Santa Fe Shatter Cone was actually made by Thornton McElvain in 2003 when the retired geologist was walking his dogs, although it took years to confirm it was an ancient meteorite crater. McElvain was familiar with the unusual structure and contacted geologist and impact specialist Jared Morrow who was a personal friend of Geoff Notkin and had even visited Popigai Crater in Siberia with Notkin on an expedition to the site in 1999 for his Meteorite Men television series. Morrow then enlisted the help of his friend Christian Koebert, another eminent impact specialist and planetary geologist, who visited McElvain's site to confirm the rocks were shatter cones. Measuring nearly 11 inches (28 cm) and weighing some 8 kilograms (18 pounds), the rather unusual example was field collected by Geoff Notkin, which has a bark-like exterior with visible separation cracking. This specimen was collected with landowner permission off private land.
Measurements: 10.83 x 7.28 x 5.91 inches (27.50 x 18.50 x 15.00 cm), weighs 8.16 kilograms (18 pounds)

Provenance: The Geoff Notkin Collection

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