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ISS028-E-44433

ISS028-E-44433         Click the photo number to access all resolutions available and the database record.

Bigach Impact Crater, Kazakhstan: Some meteor impact craters, like Barringer Crater in Arizona, are easily recognizable due to well-preserved forms and features on the landscape. Other impact structures, such as Bigach Impact Crater in northeastern Kazakhstan, are harder to recognize due to their age, modification by geologic processes, or even human alteration of the landscape. At approximately five million years old, Bigach is a relatively young geologic feature. However, active tectonic processes in the region have caused movement of parts of the structure along faults, leading to a somewhat angular appearance (image center). The roughly circular rim of the 8-kilometer (diameter) structure is still discernable around the relatively flat interior. In addition to modification by faulting and erosion, the interior of the impact structure has also been used for agricultural activities, as indicated by the presence of tan, graded fields. Other rectangular agricultural fields are visible to the northeast and east. The closest settlement, Novopavlovka, is barely visible near the top of the image.

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