The Barringer Crater, also known as Meteor Crater, is a striking geological feature located in the high desert of northern Arizona, USA. It is one of the world’s most pristine and best-preserved terrestrial impact sites, having formed approximately 50,000 years ago. Understanding the tremendous forces involved in its creation requires a precise quantification of its current physical dimensions.
Key Measured Dimensions
The crater’s bowl-shaped depression spans an average rim-to-rim diameter of approximately 3,900 feet (1.2 kilometers). This measurement is an average because the outline is slightly squared due to pre-existing geological joints in the underlying rock strata. The current depth of the crater floor below the rim is roughly 560 feet (170 meters).
The rim itself rises about 148 feet (45 meters) above the surrounding plain, forming a visible mound of rock ejected during the excavation phase. Much of the crater’s original depth has been filled in over the millennia with fragmented rock and sediments. Scientists estimate that this rubble, known as the breccia lens, lies up to 790 feet (240 meters) deep above the crater bedrock.
The total volume of material excavated is estimated to be nearly 63 million cubic meters of sandstone and limestone. This material was thrown out in a surrounding blanket of debris that extends for more than a mile from the rim. The preservation of the rim and the ejecta blanket is largely due to the arid climate of the Colorado Plateau.
Estimating the Impacting Object
The Barringer Crater was formed by a dense, nickel-iron meteorite, the fragments of which are known as the Canyon Diablo meteorite. Scientific consensus places the size of the impactor at about 160 feet (50 meters) in diameter.
The meteoroid was traveling at a high velocity, with research suggesting an impact speed of approximately 29,000 miles per hour (12.8 kilometers per second). Though the object was relatively small, its hypervelocity impact released a large amount of energy. The explosive power of the event is estimated to be roughly 10 megatons of TNT.
The pressure and heat generated upon impact caused most of the iron-nickel mass of the meteoroid to vaporize instantly. Only a small fraction survived as scattered fragments and microscopic spherules mixed into the breccia lens and ejecta blanket. This vaporization explains why no large central mass of iron was found beneath the crater floor.
Visualizing the Crater’s Scale
The dimensions of the Barringer Crater can be understood through visual comparisons that translate the raw numbers into relatable concepts. The 3,900-foot diameter means the crater is nearly one mile across from rim to rim. A dozen standard football fields, placed end-to-end, would not span this distance.
The current depth of 560 feet is easily capable of swallowing the height of a 50-story office tower. The walls slope steeply from the rim, leading to a floor situated well below the level of the surrounding Arizona plain. The 160-foot meteorite that caused this cavity was about the height of a modern 12-to-14-story building.
The scale is emphasized by the upturned rim, which contains rock layers inverted during the explosive excavation. This ring of uplifted rock represents millions of tons of material thrown out of the ground in seconds. Standing on the rim offers a tangible view of the destructive power of a cosmic impact.