2006-05-19 | SCIENCE
In Search of Crater Chains
When fragments of shattered comets or asteroids impact with planets they leave chains of craters on the surface. Such features are hard to spot on Earth because craters from long ago have been eroded by processes like wind, rain and volcanic activity.
Understanding the impact history of our planet is important in estimating the amount of organic material that may have been supplied to the early Earth from comets and asteroids during the development of life. It is also important to determine how impacts may have shaped the environment of our planet, thereby affecting life's development and evolution.
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from NASA, May 19, 2006
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