PSI scientists Shawn Wright and Henry Throop took a trip to India’s Lonar Crater, a 500,000-year-old asteroid impact. This impact is believed to be one of the best analogues on Earth for craters on Mars. Wright is one of the world’s leading experts studying this crater.
Above, Henry Throop, left, and Shawn Wright with a sample of impact melt glass from the crater ejecta blanket.
Below, Shawn Wright, right, Henry Throop, center, and local guide Anand Mishra on the crater rim. The 1.5-km diameter crater is filled is filled with spring-fed water, and more than a dozen Hindu temples from the 11th century are still preserved around the lake’s edge.
Below, Wright on the crater floor breaking open a salt-crusted, unshocked basalt.
