Asteroid crater discovered in China

Scientists have found evidence of a large asteroid impact in southern China, according to the South China Morning Post.

The space object fell on the territory of Guangdong province about 10,000 years ago, at a time when human civilization was already actively developing.

After the asteroid fell, a crater appeared, which was named Jinling. It is located near the city of Zhaoqing.

According to scientists, this is the fifth confirmed asteroid impact site in China and the first discovered in the southern part of the country.

The crater resembles an inclined bowl with a diameter of about 900 meters. Experts estimate that it was left by a celestial object approximately 30 meters in size.

The impact released energy comparable to the explosion of 600,000 tons of TNT — or forty atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima.

According to researchers, such an impact changed the landscape and was catastrophic for plants and animals within a radius of several kilometers from the epicenter.

To confirm the origin of the crater, scientists studied quartz samples and discovered microscopic glass planes.

Researchers are now determining the age of the crater and continuing to analyze its geological structure and degree of erosion.