(ORDO NEWS) — According to a study published in Scientific Reports, Martian mega tsunamis could have been caused by a collision with an asteroid like Chicxulub, which contributed to the mass extinction of dinosaurs on Earth 66 million years ago.
Previous research has suggested that an asteroid or comet impact into the ocean in the northern lowlands of Mars could have triggered a mega tsunami some 3.4 billion years ago.
However, prior to this study, the location of the impact crater was unclear.
The researchers analyzed maps of the surface of Mars and identified an impact crater that could have caused a mega tsunami.
The crater, which they named Pol, has a diameter of 110 kilometers. It is located in the northern lowlands, which previous studies have suggested may once have been covered by the ocean.
The authors believe that Paul could have formed about 3.4 billion years ago.
The researchers simulated asteroid and comet collisions with the region to test what type of impact this crater could have created, and whether it could have resulted in a megatsunami.
They found that the impact that could have created these craters was either caused by a nine-kilometer asteroid hitting strong ground resistance, or a three-kilometer asteroid hitting weak ground resistance.
Both simulated impacts created craters 110 kilometers in diameter and generated mega tsunamis that reached 1,500 kilometers from the center of the impact site.
An analysis of the mega tsunami caused by a three-kilometer-long asteroid impact showed that this tsunami may have reached about 250 meters in height on land.
The authors believe that the consequences of the alleged impact may be similar to the Chicxulub impact, which, according to previous studies, created a crater on Earth with a diameter of 100 kilometers and led to a megatsunami 200 meters high on land.
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