A researcher has stated that the deep scar under the North Sea, which was originally thought to be UK’s only space impact crater, is nothing more that a widespread process caused due to the movement of salt rocks.
Professor John Underhill, from the University of Edinburgh, has stated that the Silverpit structure cannot be a scar due to a collision of a meteorite.
Professor Underhill put this theory in 2004 and since then he has been working to collect evidence to back his theory.
The group that discovered the structure in 2002 stands by on the theory that the crater was created by a cataclysmic asteroid that collided with Earth about 65-million years ago.
The3km-wide crater was discovered in 2002 by Dr. Stewart and his colleagues, about 130km east of Yorkshire coast.
The structure comprises of concentric rings and is about one km deep. The crater is covered by shales and sandstones so it is only visible on seismic data that is collected by companies hunting for oil and gas fields.
Professor Underhill has examined a 3,750-sq-km-area around the structure and has concluded that the feature is not unique and there are many similar features in the close vicinity of the Silverpit structure. He has stated that if the structure was formed when an asteroid collided with Earth, then there was no point that other similar features were also present in the area.
He has identified at least nine major bowl-shaped depressions known as synclines and over 15 subsidiary structures including Silverpit itself.
He now stated that the swarm of structures is a result of movement of a thick layer of salt of Upper Permian age that lies below the whole area.
However Dr. Steward is un-moved. He has pointed his finger towards the 300m-high central peak in the centre of the structure. Such peaks are signatures of an asteroid collision.
This hype in debate has drawn in other researchers from the geological community. Some researchers are with Dr. Steward and have stated that the structure is geometrically similar to other craters, particularly those found on other planets.
Via: BBC
