Eighty miles off the coast of Yorkshire, deep beneath the seabed, lies a remarkable crater that has long puzzled scientists. Was it formed by the thrilling impact of an asteroid, or more mundanely, by the movement of underground salt deposits?
Today, the decades-long debate appears to be settled. The Silverpit crater, located 700 metres below the North Sea, was most likely created by an asteroid or comet about the size of York Minster, which struck Earth over 43 million years ago.
Scientists say the 160-metre-wide asteroid slammed into the sea, triggering a tsunami 100 metres high. It would have been a catastrophic day for any early mammals in the area—though not as devastating as the asteroid impact 66 million years ago that wiped out the dinosaurs.
The Silverpit crater is far smaller than the Chicxulub crater in Mexico, where an asteroid 6 to 9 miles wide caused a mass extinction of 75% of plant and animal species. Still, experts say it is both fascinating and highly significant, as the only known impact crater near what is now the UK.
Uisdean Nicholson, a sedimentologist from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh who led the research team, explained that new seismic imaging provided an unprecedented view of the crater. Describing the investigation as “a needle in a haystack approach,” he said confirming the impact was “definitely an exciting moment.”
The 2-mile-wide crater, surrounded by a 12-mile-wide zone of circular faults, was first discovered in 2002 by petroleum geologists. They believed it was an impact crater, pointing to typical features like a central peak, circular shape, and concentric rings. Initially estimated to be over 60 million years old, it made headlines, with one Guardian report suggesting, “Crater could be asteroid strike.”
But not all scientists were convinced. Some, led by geologist Professor John Underhill of the University of Edinburgh, argued for a less dramatic origin: the movement of deep salt rocks. “I feel like I’m spoiling the party,” Underhill said at the time. “It’s a less glamorous explanation, but that’s what the scientific data is saying.”
In 2009, a debate at the Geological Society ended with a vote—80% to 20% against the impact theory. Nicholson, then a PhD student, recalls that most favoured the mundane explanation, reflecting what he sees as a tendency to reject spectacular ideas. “There are different flavours of geologist,” he noted. “People say I get too excited by certain ideas.”
Nicholson was later asked to study Silverpit due to his experience discovering another impact crater in West Africa. With funding from the Natural Environment Research Council, his team used seismic imaging, microscopic rock analysis, and numerical models to gather what they call the strongest evidence yet that Silverpit is indeed an impact crater.
Asteroid impacts are rare, with none recorded in human history. The craters they leave are even rarer, Nicholson explained, because “plate tectonics and erosion destroy almost all traces of most of these events.” Only about 200 confirmed impact craters exist on land, and just 33 have been identified beneath the ocean.
Silverpit is exceptionally well-preserved and important, he added. “We can use these findings to understand how asteroid impacts have shaped our planet throughout history, as well as predict what might happen if we were to face an asteroid impact in the future.””Collision in the future.” The findings are published in Nature Communications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about the massive crater beneath the North Sea designed to be clear and helpful for a range of readers
General Beginner Questions
1 What is this crater called
Its called the Silverpit crater
2 Where exactly is it located
Its beneath the North Sea about 130 kilometers off the coast of eastern England
3 How big is the Silverpit crater
The main crater is about 3 km wide but its surrounded by a series of concentric rings making the entire structure much larger up to about 20 km in diameter
4 How was the crater discovered
It wasnt found by digging It was discovered in 2002 by geologists analyzing seismic reflection data that was originally gathered by oil and gas companies
5 What created the Silverpit crater
Scientists believe it was formed by the impact of an asteroid or comet colliding with Earth
6 When did this impact happen
It is estimated to have occurred between 74 and 45 million years ago most likely around 65 million years ago
7 Was this the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs
No that was the Chicxulub impact in Mexico which happened around 66 million years ago and was vastly larger The Silverpit impactor was much smaller
Intermediate Scientific Questions
8 Why are scientists so sure it was an impact and not something else
The key evidence is its unique multiringed structure which is very difficult to form through other geological processes like salt dome movement or a volcano The pattern is a known signature of highenergy impacts
9 How could an impact create concentric rings
The immense force of the asteroid hitting the Earth sends shockwaves through the crust These shockwaves can cause the rock layers below to fracture and collapse in a series of rings similar to how a droplet of water creates ripples in a pond
10 What would the impact have been like for life on Earth at the time
Since it happened in a shallow sea it would have created enormous tsunamis and thrown vast amounts of water vapor and debris into the atmosphere However because the impacting object was relatively small its effects
