Impacts??

[AugustMoose87]

Found these today, and don't know what to make of them...





Swung my X-Terra 705 with coiltek 15" 18.75kHz in the area and didn't come up with much... Nails, a lead pellet, bottle cap and what I am pretty sure is a steel BB... I was hoping it was a meteorite, but it is exactly the right size and weight for a steel BB


They are in a flat slope of Lyons sandstone (the hardest sandstone in the world I'm told), about 77" apart. Nothing in the top crater, which has a nice bowl shape. The lower one had some dirt/debris and charcoalized wood in it, but no charring on the rock itself. It has some more angular aspects to it, but still largely bowl shaped.

 

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[hvacker]

That's strange. By the stress cracks it almost looks like the force came from below. Maybe studying moon impact craters would tell more.
It's not unusual for meteorites to be completely destroyed on impact.

 

[kingskid1611]

Remember a few days ago they lost a Russian rocket and don't know where it went. you might check the hole.......

 

[supertraq]

Well the splatter marks say it was and impact, now was it a Meteorite or a 30/06 180 grain bullet?
I don't think a bullet would have had enough energy or mass to cause the scares in the rock that radiate outward.

 

[AugustMoose87]

Well the splatter marks say it was and impact, now was it a Meteorite or a 30/06 180 grain bullet?
I don't think a bullet would have had enough energy or mass to cause the scares in the rock that radiate outward.

That was what I was thinking... It would take one heck of a bullet/firearm to do that.

Plus, I am hearing this second hand, but a buddy said one of his buddies was working outside nearby and swore he heard/saw "a meteorite or something" over that direction about 2 years ago. Now that we found it, my buddy and I are going to try and get a hold of that witness and see if we can get any more details.

 

[Hitndahed]

WOW !!!
I LOVE it when stuff like this is discovered.
They surely do appear to be "impacts" of some type.
EXCELLENT discovery,,, I am anxious to hear more if and when anything else is found out about these craters.

 

[hvacker]

What still puzzles me is the fracture lines. A meteorite impact will create fracture lines below the point of impact and the ring around that point will be more like an uplift. Iridium is rare on earth but often is brought by meteorites. A test for that might tell a story. Don't ask me how to do that test.

 

[AugustMoose87]

I sent CU's geology department an email a while back, but have yet to hear anything...

Still working on my potential witness

 

[Rockhunter1620]

A 30 caliber or 30-06-180 grain, no. Looks more like damage associated with a 290-360 grain 50 cal. rifle round, maybe

 

[Dakota Sioux]

cannonball hit?

 

[AugustMoose87]

Could be either I suppose, but I have been unable to find any indication of any military engagement or training in the area... I knew they shot fireworks off about 40 yards away, and I just found out they used to quarry the stone, but my mind jumped to impact, not explosion... Maybe a blasting cap or something??

 

[Whiplash00]

The impact angles look similar. Is the sandstone vitrified inside or around the holes? In the one photo, whatever it was appears to have maintained shape for a few layers.

 

[smokeythecat]

Could be more modern military too.

 

[AugustMoose87]

The impact angles look similar. Is the sandstone vitrified inside or around the holes? In the one photo, whatever it was appears to have maintained shape for a few layers.

The similar angles are what make me fairly certain what ever it was, it was a single event. No obvious vitrification, though I may go back and take another look once the snow melts.

 

[Tuberale]

Don't discount the possibility of a meteorite just yet. That "steel bb" sounds exactly like what a meteorite should look like. Except it wouldn't be steel, it would be more like stainless steel. Only way to tell is send it off for analysis. The proximity of many impact sites in a small area further supports a "strew field".