A gaping big hole in my education

What happens when a piece of an asteroid traveling at 26,000 miles per hour crashes into planet Earth? It leaves a big hole. A very big hole. A hole that is  2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep.

That all this happened approximately 50,000 years ago is neither here nor there. It’s all been scientifically validated and proven beyond doubt that Meteor Crater, in Arizona, is ‘the most well known, best preserved meteor crater on Earth’. That I’d never heard of it is neither here nor there either. Put that down to me not paying attention in Geography class. But like the millions of other tourists that can’t resist the signage off the I40, I had to go have a look.

IMG_6017 (800x600)

Now, I suppose if you’re a space fanatic, a mineralogist, or a geologist, you might get a kick out of it. I’m firmly in the ‘oh, it’s a hole in the ground’ category. Yes it’s impressive, in its own way but it just didn’t do it for me.

I have trouble dealing with time in such great numbers. Anything BC is beyond my limited imagination. Fifty thousand years ago is way too far back to have any impact on my life, at all. It’s a little like temperature. Anything over 25 degrees Celsius is hot. Anyone over 5.10 is tall. My sense of scale leaves a lot to be desired.

IMG_6001 (800x600) (800x600)

Until I got to thinking what would happen if some similar piece of stuff hit the Earth tomorrow. What devastation would result from a collision that had the energy of more than 20 million tons of TNT? Is there any part of the world so remote that the damage to human lives wouldn’t be off the charts? And would we see it coming? Or would it be all over before we knew what had hit us?

The mind boggles. Science is boggling. And for the 30 minutes of ‘what ifs’ that ensued, coupled with a repeated resolve to leave nothing unsaid in this lift lest a little piece of rock is already hurtling on its way,  it was worth the detour.

Share:

Sign up here to get an email whenever I post something new.

Never miss a post

Give stories, not stuff.

Do you need to find a gift for a traveling loved one? The best gifts are experiences. Stories and memories last far longer than ‘stuff’. Try Tinggly for thousands of great experiences and gift ideas.

More Posts

Staying local at Kányavári sziget

We dream of islands in the sun. Exotic places where we can get away from it all. We spend hundreds if not thousands of whatevers

Zalakaros, Hungary

Not far from us is one of the most visited towns in Hungary – Zalakaros. With its 9 hotels, it has more than 1000 hotel

Banská Bystrica, Slovakia

Slovakia, I’m impressed. Banská Bystrica is yet another gorgeous town surrounded by the Low Tatras where the Italian custom of passeggiata is alive and well.

Hronsek, Slovakia

One of the best things about travelling by car and avoiding toll roads is that you can follow the signs that catch your eye. So

Banská Štiavnica, Slovakia

Headed to Poland, to the Tatras, driving, we needed to break up the journey and overnight somewhere. I left it to himself to choose. I

2 responses

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

2 responses

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.