Meteor Crater

Barringer Crater in Coconino County, Arizona, is the best-preserved meteorite impact crater on Earth, measuring roughly 1,200 meters across and 170 meters deep. Around 50,000 years ago, the Canyon Diablo iron-nickel meteorite struck at an estimated 12 kilometers per second, releasing energy equivalent to several nuclear warheads. For decades the depression was assumed to be volcanic; it was mining engineer Daniel Moreau Barringer who, starting in 1902, championed the impact hypothesis and purchased the site convinced a massive iron meteorite lay buried beneath — he never found the ore body he hoped for, as most of the impactor vaporized on contact. Designated a National Natural Landmark, the site today features a visitor center with meteorite samples and impact science exhibits. The crater rim walk offers sweeping views across the open desert expanse of the southern Colorado Plateau.