Ganymedes Ancient Encounter: The Aftermath of an Asteroid Collision
Andrew Dombard of #UICLAS Earth and Environmental Sciences weighs in on a recent study that reveals that an ancient asteroid collided with Jupiter's moon Ganymede and caused a massive tilt four billion years ago.
"The history of our solar system is a turbulent one. The infamous Chicxulub asteroid, which decimated the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, was just one of many space rocks that have pelted the planets and their moons since their formation.
Now, new research has dug up an even more calamitous collision in our solar system’s distant past: An asteroid 20 times the size of the Chicxulub impactor wreaked planetary-scale havoc four billion years ago. And the unfortunate recipient was Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon."
Check out the article published in Smithsonian Magazine: go.uic.edu/andrew-dombard-smithsonian