Why it matters

Vredefort shows that a crater can be less a surface shape than a deep structure revealed by time.

What happenedOne of Earth's largest and oldest known impact structures, preserved as a deeply eroded dome.
Why it mattersVredefort shows that a crater can be less a surface shape than a deep structure revealed by time.
How scientists knowEarth Impact Database

Measurements and uncertainty

直径250 km
Depthnot listed
Ageabout 2.02 billion years
状态已确认
Coordinates27.000° S / 27.500° E
Record levelextended

Extended record: core parameters have an editorial baseline, while age, depth, and preservation still require primary-source review.

科学档案

Preserved rocks show deformation, shock evidence, and large-scale ring elements despite immense erosion.

Data provenanceEarth Impact Database

重建图廊

更多陨石坑视觉解读

如果已验证图像不足，档案会补充科学重建：不是用幻想替代事实，而是与来源清晰区分的视觉假设。

世界调色ocean blue, cloud light, and living green land
Vredefort reads as an ancient geological structure rather than a fresh crater.
当前视觉预览基础图版：来源图像、轨道资料或编辑图版，视觉解读从这里开始。
Reverse reconstructionmoving from the present trace back to the impact event
Chronological inversionreading the object from future state back through earlier layers
The present as an archive of the futuretreating today's profile as evidence for future analysis

Visual reconstruction

Reverse reconstruction → Chronological inversion → Bidirectional analysis → The present as an archive of the future

每张档案都需要视觉预览：现有图像、经过美学处理的来源，或科学重建图。

Reverse reconstructionmoving from the present trace back to the impact event
Chronological inversionreading the object from future state back through earlier layers
Bidirectional analysischecking past-to-present and present-to-past interpretations
The present as an archive of the futuretreating today's profile as evidence for future analysis

研究历史

Long studied as a geological anomaly, its impact origin was established through mineralogical and structural evidence.

来源

CSVJSONVredefort. Crater.world record. Last reviewed 2026-05-08.
Last reviewed
2026-05-08
Source baseline
Earth Impact Database
Uncertainty note
Extended record: core parameters have an editorial baseline, while age, depth, and preservation still require primary-source review.
Earth Impact DatabaseUniversity of New Brunswick

Education mode

事实

  • The site is part of the UNESCO World Heritage list.
  • Much of the original crater form has been removed by erosion.
Glossaryejecta, impact melt, breccia, central peak, erosion
Classroom questionWhich evidence separates an impact crater from a volcanic caldera?
CompareChicxulub