Explanation: What on Earth is that? The Richat Structure in the Sahara Desert of Mauritania is easily visible from space because it is nearly 50 kilometers across. Once thought to be an impact crater, the Richat Structure's flat middle and lack of shock-altered rock indicates otherwise. The possibility that the Richat Structure was formed by a volcanic eruption also seems improbable because of the lack of a dome of igneous or volcanic rock. Rather, the layered sedimentary rock of the Richat structure is now thought by many to have been caused by uplifted rock sculpted by erosion. The above image was captured last year by the orbiting Landsat 7 satellite. Why the Richat Structure is nearly circular remains a mystery.

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Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.

Publikacii s klyuchevymi slovami: Earth - Richat Structure - Zemlya - struktura Rishat Publikacii so slovami: Earth - Richat Structure - Zemlya - struktura Rishat
Sm. takzhe: Voshod Zemli: video Udarnyi krater Manikuagan: vid iz kosmosa Zemlya i Luna: vid s drugoi storony Snezhnaya burya 1938 goda v Verhnem Michigane Polet nad nochnoi Zemlei – II Apollon-17: serp Zemli Samyi bol'shoi kamen' v nashei Solnechnoi sisteme Vse publikacii na tu zhe temu >>