JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Image

Manicouagan Impact Structure, Quebec

Dec. 5, 2001
Lake Manicouagan in northern Quebec, Canada, as seen by NASA's Terra satellite on June 1, 2001, during Terra orbit 7737.

The large annular lake in this image represents the remnants of one of the largest impact craters still preserved on the surface of the Earth. Lake Manicouagan in northern Quebec, Canada, surrounds the central uplift of the impact structure, which is about 70 kilometers in diameter and is composed of impact-brecciated rock. Glaciation and other erosional processes have reduced the extent of the crater, with the original diameter estimated at about 100 kilometers. This natural-color image of the region was acquired by MISR's nadir (vertical-viewing) camera on June 1, 2001, during Terra orbit 7737.

The impact that formed Manicouagan is thought to have occurred about 212 million years ago, toward the end of the Triassic period. Some scientists believe that this impact may have been responsible for a mass extinction associated with the loss of roughly 60% of all species. It has been proposed that the impact was created by an asteroid with a diameter of about 5 kilometers. The lake is bounded by erosion-resistant metamorphic and igneous rocks, and shock metamorphic effects are abundant in the target rocks of the crater floor. Today Lake Manicouagan serves as a reservoir and is one of Quebec's most important regions for Atlantic salmon fishing.

MISR was built and is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, for NASA's Office of Earth Science, Washington, DC. The Terra satellite is managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology.

For more information: http://www-misr.jpl.nasa.gov

Download JPG
Download TIFF
Target
  • Earth
Spacecraft
  • Terra
Instrument
  • Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR)
Credit
NASA/GSFC/LaRC/JPL, MISR Team

Keep Exploring

Related Topic

News .

NASA Uses 30-Year Satellite Record to Track and Project Rising Seas

News .

Ranking Atmospheric Rivers: New Study Finds World of Potential

Event April 20, 2023 .

Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT) Mission

News .

NASA and Italian Space Agency Join Forces on Air Pollution Mission

News .

NASA-ISRO Science Instruments Arrive in India Ahead of 2024 Launch

News .

NASA Space Mission Takes Stock of Carbon Dioxide Emissions by Countries

News .

Removing Traces of Life in Lab Helps NASA Scientists Study Its Origins

News .

Dynamic NASA-Built Weather Sensors Enlisted to Track Tropical Cyclones

News .

NASA-ISRO Earth Science Instruments Get Send-Off Before Moving to India

News .

Scientists Track Tropical Landslide Creeping Below an African City

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018