Tswaing crater

- 25.40833333333328.083055555556Koordinaten: 25 ° 24 '30 " S, 28 ° 4' 59" O

Tswaing ( Setswana for ' place of salt ', also referred to as Pretoria Saltpan ) is an impact crater in South Africa in the Gauteng Province, about 40 kilometers north- west of Pretoria.

Description

The crater has a diameter of about 1.1 kilometers, a wall height of about 60 meters above the surrounding countryside and measured from the highest point of the crater rim, a depth of 119 meters.

There is a shallow crater lake that is fed by groundwater and rainwater, and was formerly used for the production of table salt and soda in it. Some ruins of the associated buildings are still visible.

In the middle of the lake leads a dam was built to make holes and to determine the geology of the subsurface and the origin of the crater.

Formation

The formation of the crater - either by volcanism or by the impact of a meteoroid - has long been controversial. 1990 could be safely determined that there is an impact crater Only by drilling.

The crater was created about 220,000 years ago by the impact of a meteoroid with a diameter of 30 to 50 m and an estimated speed of 20 to 30 km / s. The released energy is 20 to 40 megatons (TNT equivalent), or about 1,000 nuclear bombs from Hiroshima - type appreciated. It covers an area of ​​approximately 1,000 square kilometers was devastated in the area.

Others

The crater is accessible as a branch of " Meteorite Crater Tswaing " of the National Cultural History Museum in Pretoria and as part of a protected area. He is on the N1 motorway and then to reach the M35. The crater can walk - be explored - in about 1.5 hours.