The Luna crater or Luna structure is an

impact crater An impact crater is a depression (geology), depression in the surface of a solid astronomical body formed by the hypervelocity impact event, impact of a smaller object. In contrast to volcanic craters, which result from explosion or internal c ...

at Luna village in

Bhuj Bhuj () is a city and the headquarters of Kutch district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Etymology According to legend, Kutch (Kachchh) was ruled by the Nāga chieftains in the past. Sagai, a queen of Sheshapattana, who was married to King B ...

taluka of

Kutch district Kutch district (), officially spelled Kachchh is a district of Gujarat state in western India, with its headquarters (capital) at Bhuj. Covering an area of 45,674 km2, it is the largest district of India. The area of Kutch is larger than ...

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

, India. The crater is located in a low-lying, soft, flat area and appears unconventional and deceptive when compared to other craters in India, which are usually found on hard, rocky surfaces. The structure is the result of the largest iron

bolide A bolide is normally taken to mean an exceptionally bright meteor, but the term is subject to more than one definition, according to context. It may refer to any large Impact crater, crater-forming body, or to one that explodes in the atmosphere. ...

of the last 10,000 years or even 50,000 years.

Description

Rock fragments and glasslike materials found at the site indicate a meteorite impact, the date of which has tentatively been put at around 2000 BCE. The crater, located in the

Rann of Kutch The Rann of Kutch is a large area of salt marshes that span the border between India and Pakistan. It is located mostly in the Kutch district of the Indian state of Gujarat, with a minor portion extending into the Sindh province of Pakistan. ...

, is circular, with a diameter of , and its lowest point is only about above sea level. The crater is visibly a kilometre wide, but the satellite radar imagery shows it is spread over a five kilometres radius. Since it lacks the characteristics of a typical impact site, it is a unique site in the worldit has a very low depth to diameter ratio. A round lake 1 square kilometre in area and 2 meters in depth lies in the centre of the crater, which remains dry during the summer. The depression is covered with thick vegetation of thorny Acacia species (

Acacia nilotica ''Vachellia nilotica'', more commonly known as ''Acacia nilotica'', and by the vernacular names of gum arabic tree, babul, thorn mimosa, Egyptian acacia or thorny acacia, is a flowering tree in the family Fabaceae. It is native to Africa, the M ...

and

Prosopis juliflora ''Neltuma juliflora '' (, ''Cuji'' in Venezuela, ''Trupillo'' in Colombia, ''Aippia'' in the Wayuunaiki language and long-thorn kiawe in Hawaii), formerly ''Prosopis juliflora'', is a shrub or small tree in the family Fabaceae, a kind of mesquit ...

). The rim, with upturned beds and

shatter cone Shatter cones are rare geological features that are only known to form in the bedrock beneath meteorite impact craters or underground nuclear explosions. They are evidence that the rock has been subjected to a shock with pressures in the ran ...

, has no hard rocks. X-ray analysis of the materials adhering to meteorite fragments revealed

stishovite Stishovite is an extremely hard, dense tetragonal form ( polymorph) of silicon dioxide. It is very rare on the Earth's surface; however, it may be a predominant form of silicon dioxide in the Earth, especially in the lower mantle. Stishovite w ...

and

coesite Coesite () is a form (polymorphism (materials science), polymorph) of silicon dioxide (silicon, Sioxide, O2) that is formed when very high pressure (2–3 gigapascals), and moderately high temperature (), are applied to quartz. Coesite was first ...

, the high pressure polymorphs of

silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , commonly found in nature as quartz. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is one of the most complex and abundant f ...

, which confirms the impact origin of the crater. Among the various evidences expected at an impact site, dark, heavy, magnetic fragments, like metallic meteorites, with spherical cavities are found at the rim of the structure, and glassy objects comparable to

tektite Tektites () are gravel-sized bodies composed of black, green, brown or grey natural glass formed from terrestrial debris ejected during meteorite impacts. The term was coined by Austrian geologist Franz Eduard Suess (1867–1941), son of Eduar ...

s have been recovered.R V Karan, R. V. Karanth, P. S. Thakker And M. S. Gadhavi, A Preliminary Report on The Possible Impact Crater of Kachchh, Current Science, Vol. 91, No. 7, 10 Oct 2006.

Religious significance

The Luna

Dham Dhaam is a traditional feast celebrated in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, some parts of Punjab especially in Talwara and Mukerian region and Jammu region Dhaam is prepared and served on every joyful event or celebration in the family. Tem ...

Temple lies at the north end of the crater.

More potential craters in Kutch

The satellite data indicates that there could be a few more craters within the Kutch, which are hidden by subsequent denudational activities.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Luna Crater National Geological Monuments in India Landforms of Gujarat Impact craters of India

Description

Religious significance

More potential craters in Kutch

See also

References