A massive crater, Uhackatik, has been discovered in Canada's north, potentially dating back 390 million years. This discovery, made by amateur astronomer Joël Lapointe, has sparked excitement in the scientific community. The crater, located in Quebec's Côte-Nord region, is approximately 15 miles wide and exhibits shock metamorphic effects, indicating a meteorite impact. Gordon Osinski, a planetary geologist, confirmed the crater's existence and its probable size, making it one of the largest discovered in recent years. The crater's age and similarity to the moon's Tycho crater provide valuable insights into meteorite impacts on Earth and other rocky extraterrestrial bodies.
What makes this discovery particularly fascinating is the preservation of impact melt rocks, which are usually the first parts of a crater to be eroded. Osinski and his team were able to observe shatter cones, branching features in rock layers produced by shockwaves. This discovery will be presented at the 88th Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society in August, although it is not yet peer-reviewed.
The crater's location on the traditional lands of the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit has been approved, and Osinski's expedition revealed shock metamorphic effects, deformations to rocks caused by shock waves and heating. The crater's age and similarity to the moon's Tycho crater make it a valuable comparison for understanding meteorite impacts on Earth and other rocky extraterrestrial bodies.
One of the best comparisons to Uhackatik is the Kamestastin (also known as Mistastin) crater in northern Labrador, Canada. This crater, which includes anorthosite, a common mineral found in craters at the moon's south pole, has been studied by Osinski and his team. The Artemis II astronauts, including Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen and NASA astronaut Christina Koch, did an expedition to Kamestastin in 2023 alongside Osinski and collaborators.
To fully confirm Uhackatik's extraterrestrial origin, Osinski and his team are examining samples microscopically for more evidence of shock effects. In the meantime, Osinski's lunar work with NASA continues, and he will be part of the geology teams supporting the moon-landing astronauts during the Artemis 4 and 5 missions, which will touch down as soon as 2028.
This discovery highlights the importance of amateur astronomers in scientific research and the potential for further discoveries in the field. The preservation of impact melt rocks and the observation of shock metamorphic effects provide valuable insights into the formation of craters and the impact of meteorites on Earth and other rocky extraterrestrial bodies.
