top of page
SCIENCE
Physical - Astronomy
Largest Impact Craters on Earth
This list features the largest impact craters ever discovered on Earth.
RANK | CRATER | LOCATION | AREA | EVENT |
1 | Vredefort | South Africa | 300 km (186 miles) | Approx. 2 billion years ago |
2 | Chicxulub | Mexico | 180 km (112 miles) | Dinosaur extinction event (66 million years ago) |
3 | Sudbury Basin | Canada | 130 km (81 miles) | Formed about 1.85 billion years ago |
4 | Popigai | Russia | 100 km (62 miles) | Formed about 35 million years ago |
5 | Manicouagan | Canada | 100 km (62 miles) | Formed about 214 million years ago |
6 | Acraman | Australia | 90 km (56 miles) | Formed about 580 million years ago |
7 | Chesapeake Bay | United States | 85 km (53 miles) | Formed about 35 million years ago |
8 | Morokweng | South Africa | 70 km (43 miles) | Formed about 145 million years ago |
References
Statista (2024) Estimated diameters of major asteroid impact structures. Available at: https://www.statista.com/chart/30304/estimated-diameters-of-major-asteroid-impact-structures/ [Accessed 1 December 2025].
UNESCO (n.d.) Historic Centre of Mexico City and Xochimilco. Available at: https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1162/ [Accessed 1 December 2025].
NASA (n.d.) Deep Impact and the Mass Extinction of Species 65 Million Years Ago. Available at: https://science.nasa.gov/earth/deep-impact-and-the-mass-extinction-of-species-65-million-years-ago/ [Accessed 1 December 2025].
The Canadian Encyclopedia (n.d.) Sudbury (Greater). Available at: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sudbury-greater [Accessed 1 December 2025].
Indiana Jones Wiki (n.d.) Popigai Crater. Available at: https://indianajones.fandom.com/wiki/Popigai_Crater [Accessed 1 December 2025].
Crater Explorer (n.d.) Manicouagan Impact Structure. Available at: https://craterexplorer.ca/manicouagan-impact-structure/ [Accessed 1 December 2025].
Mindat.org (n.d.) Morokweng Crater. Available at: https://www.mindat.org/loc-196061.html [Accessed 1 December 2025].
Britannica (2024) Chesapeake Bay Crater. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/place/Chesapeake-Bay [Accessed 1 December 2025].
David Darling (n.d.) Morokweng Crater. Available at: https://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/M/Morokweng_crater.html [Accessed 1 December 2025].
SCALA
lists
bottom of page