{"id":8882,"date":"2014-09-23T08:57:51","date_gmt":"2014-09-23T12:57:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=8882"},"modified":"2014-09-23T08:57:51","modified_gmt":"2014-09-23T12:57:51","slug":"early-asteroid-impacts-provided-metals-for-todays-mines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=8882","title":{"rendered":"Early asteroid impacts provided metals for today’s mines"},"content":{"rendered":"

The famous\u00a0nickel mine at\u00a0Sudbury<\/a>\u00a0in Ontario,\u00a0Canada was created\u00a0by a huge asteroid that hit the spot\u00a0over 1.8 billions ago. It\u00a0left\u00a0an impact crater known as the\u00a0Sudbury Basin<\/a>. Such asteroid impacts provided most of the heavy metals accessible to mines because most of the metals in the earth settled into the core of the planet:\u00a0Rare Earth – Brian Koberlein<\/a>\u00a0–<\/p>\n

… fortunately Earth was also bombarded by meteors in its early history, and this made mining practical in two ways. The first is that asteroids and meteors themselves contain vast quantities of heavy metals. By some estimates, a single mile-wide asteroid could contain twenty trillion dollars worth of precious metals. Since most of the asteroid bombardments occurred after Earth\u2019s crust formed, these metals were deposited near Earth\u2019s surface, making them easier to obtain. There is some evidence that most of accessible heavy metals are extraterrestrial in origin<\/a>\u00a0due to this process.<\/em><\/p>\n

The second is due to large impacts such as Sudbury. With large impacts, part\u00a0of the Earth\u2019s crust are melted. As a result, deposited material then settles in layers as it re-cools. Heavier elements settle at the bottom of the crater, while lighter ones settle near the top. As a result, heavy metals are concentrated at the bottom layer of the crater, producing rich veins of ore. Impacts can also create other useful byproducts, such as impact diamonds and pockets of oil.\u00a0Chicxulub crater (caused by the famous dinosaur extinction asteroid) near the Gulf of Mexico is a region with plentiful oil deposits, for example.<\/em><\/p>\n

Here’s a nicely made video describing the formation of the Sudbury basin:<\/p>\n