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Impact cratering is arguably the most ubiquitous geological process in the Solar System. It has played an important role in Earth's history, shaping the geological landscape, affecting the evolution of life, and generating economic resources. However, it was only in the latter half of the 20th century that the importance of impact cratering as a geological process was recognized and only during the past couple of decades that the study of meteorite impact structures has moved into the mainstream. Impact Cratering: Processes and Products seeks to fill a critical gap in the literature by providing an overview text covering broad aspects of the impact cratering process and aimed at graduate students, professionals and researchers alike. It introduces readers to the threat and nature of impactors, the impact cratering process, the products, and the effects – both destructive and beneficial. A series of chapters on the various techniques used to study impact craters provide a foundation for anyone studying impact craters for the first time.
List of Contributors
1. Impact cratering: Processes and products Gordon R. Osinski and Elisabetta Pierazzo
2. Population of impactors and the impact cratering rate in the inner Solar System Patrick Michel and Alessandro Morbidelli
3. The contact and compression stage of impact cratering H. Jay Melosh
4. Excavation and impact ejecta emplacement Gordon R. Osinski, Richard A. F. Grieve, and Livio L. Tornabene
5. The modification stage of crater formation Thomas Kenkmann, Gareth S. Collins and Kai Wunnemann
6. Impact-induced hydrothermal activity Kalle Kirsimae and Gordon R. Osinski
7. Impactites: Their characteristics and spatial distribution Richard A. F. Grieve and Ann M. Therriault
8. Shock Metamorphism Ludovic Ferriere and Gordon R. Osinski
9. Impact Melting Gordon R. Osinski, Richard A. F. Grieve, Cassandra Marion, and Anna Chanou
10. Environmental effects of impact events Elisabetta Pierazzo and H. Jay Melosh
11. The Geomicrobiology of impact structures Charles S. Cockell , Gordon R. Osinski, and Mary A. Voytek
12. Economic deposits at terrestrial impact structures Richard A. F. Grieve
13. Remote sensing of impact craters Shawn P. Wright, Livio L. Tornabene, and Michael S. Ramsey
14. Geophysical studies of impact craters Joanna Morgan and Mario Rebolledo-Vieyra
15. Projectile identification in terrestrial impact structures and ejecta material Steven Goderis, Francois Paquay, and Philippe Claeys
16. The Geochronology of Impact Craters Simon P. Kelley and Sarah C. Sherlock
17. Numerical modeling of impact processes Gareth S. Collins, Kai Wunnemann, Natalia Artemieva, and Elisabetta Pierazzo
18. Comparison of simple impact craters: A case study Horton E. Newsom , Shawn P. Wright , Saumitra Misra, and Justin J. Hagerty
19. Comparison of mid-size terrestrial complex impact structures: A case study Gordon R. Osinski and Richard A. F. Grieve
20. Processes and products of impact cratering: Glossary and definitions Gordon R. Osinski
Index
Dr. Gordon "Oz" Osinski is the NSERC/MDA/CSA Industrial Research Chair in Planetary Geology in the Departments of Earth Sciences and Physics and Astronomy at Western University, Canada. He holds a B.Sc. (Hons) First Class in Geology from the University of St. Andrews, Scotland (1999) and a Ph.D., also in Geology (2004), from the University of New Brunswick, Canada. His research covers the tectonics of impact crater formation, the generation of impact melts, emplacement of ejecta, and post-impact processes such as impact-associated hydrothermal activity. He has published more than 70 papers in peer-reviewed journals and special papers and has given over 60 conference presentations since 2001.
Dr. Elisabetta Pierazzo , who tragically died during the preparation of this book, was a Research Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute and anAdjunct Assistant Research Scientist at theLunar & Planetary Laboratory,University of Arizona, both located in Tucson, Arizona. She held aLaurea in Physics from the University of Padua, Italy (1988) and aPh.D.inPlanetary Sciences from University of Arizona (1997).She was a world renowned expert on the numerical modelling of impact events, focusing on the environmental effects of impact events, oblique impacts, and impact melt production.
