Scientists have confirmed that the Silverpit Crater, located nearly 80 miles off the East Yorkshire coast in the North Sea, was formed by an asteroid impact about 43 million years ago. This discovery settles a decades-long debate over the crater’s origin. The Guardian
Using advanced seismic imaging and the analysis of rare shocked quartz rock samples—signatures that only form under very high impact pressures—researchers led by Dr. Uisdean Nicholson from Heriot-Watt University finally validated the impact hypothesis. The Guardian
The asteroid, approximately 160 meters (525 feet) wide, is estimated to have generated a tsunami over 100 meters (328 feet) high, drastically affecting the surrounding marine environment at the time. The Guardian
Silverpit is just one of about 33 confirmed underwater impact craters worldwide, making it a rare and valuable geological discovery. The findings have now been published in Nature Communications. The Guardian
