description Santa Fe Overview
The Santa Fe impact structure is an exposed, heavily eroded impact feature in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains about 5 kilometers northeast of Santa Fe, New Mexico. Shatter cones exposed in a road cut along New Mexico Highway 475 provide diagnostic evidence of shock from a meteorite impact. Its apparent diameter is about 13 kilometers, while age estimates remain broad, roughly 350 to 1,472 million years, because the original crater has been strongly degraded.
help Santa Fe FAQ
Where is the Santa Fe impact structure located?
It is in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains about 5 kilometers northeast of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The feature is exposed at the surface but heavily eroded.
What evidence shows that Santa Fe is an impact structure?
Shatter cones exposed in a road cut along New Mexico Highway 475 provide diagnostic evidence of intense shock. These cone-shaped fractures are associated with meteorite impacts.
Can visitors see the Santa Fe crater from a road?
Part of the structure is visible in a road cut along New Mexico Highway 475. The exposed rocks are eroded, so the site does not appear as a simple bowl-shaped crater.
Was Santa Fe made by a meteorite?
The structure is interpreted as a meteorite impact feature. Its shatter cones provide stronger evidence than the circular shape alone.
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