| Campo del Cielo | |
|---|---|
 Otumpa mass, Natural History Museum, London | |
| Impact crater/structure | |
| Diameter | 115 m × 91 m (377 ft × 299 ft) (largest) |
| Age | 4200 to 4700 years ago Holocene |
| Exposed | Yes |
| Drilled | Yes |
| Bolide type | Coarse octahedrite to granular hexahedrite |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 27°38′S 61°42′W / 27.633°S 61.700°W |
| Country | Argentina |
| Province | Chaco, Santiago del Estero |
  Location of the craters in Chaco Province, Argentina | |
Campo del Cielo refers to a group of iron meteorites and the area in Argentina where they were found.[1] The site straddles the provinces of Chaco and Santiago del Estero, located 1,000 kilometers (620 mi) north-northwest of Buenos Aires, Argentina and approximately 500 kilometres (310 mi) southwest of Asunción, Paraguay. The crater field covers 18.5 by 3 kilometres (11.5 by 1.9 mi) and contains at least 26 craters, the largest being 115 by 91 metres (377 by 299 ft).[2]
The craters are estimated to be four to five thousand years old. They were reported to the general public in 1576, but were already well-known by aboriginal peoples. The craters and surrounding areas contain many fragments of an iron meteorite. In total, approximately 100 tonnes of fragments have been recovered, the most of any meteorite find.[3][4]
The two largest fragments, the 30.8-tonne Gancedo and 28.8-tonne El Chaco, are among the heaviest single-piece meteorite masses recovered on Earth, following the 60-tonne Hoba meteorite and a 31-tonne fragment of the Cape York meteorite.
- ^ "Campo del Cielo". Earth Impact Database. Planetary and Space Science Centre University of New Brunswick Fredericton. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
- ^ Bobrowsky, Peter T.; Rickman, Hans (2007). Comet/asteroid impacts and human society: an interdisciplinary approach. Springer. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-3-540-32709-7.
- ^ Viano, Lucas (19 June 2015). "Meteorite Thefts Pose a Problem in Ancient Impact Field". Scientific American. Archived from the original on 31 March 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
Of the 300 tons that impacted, one third has been recovered.
- ^ "Campo del Cielo". www.sun.org. Archived from the original on 2022-02-24. Retrieved 2022-02-24.