- Middlesboro crater
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This article is about the meteorite impact crater in Kentucky. For the meteorite that impacted in Middlesbrough, England in 1881, see Middlesbrough meteorite.
The Middlesboro crater is a meteorite crater in Kentucky, United States.[1] It is named after the city of Middlesborough (both spellings are used), which today occupies much of the crater.
The crater is approximately 3 miles (about 5 km) in diameter and its age is estimated to be less than 300 million years (Permian).
History
The Middlesboro crater is located in the Appalachian Mountains, between the Cumberland Mountains and Pine Mountain. It forms part of the string of geological features that made the Cumberland Gap a critical westward passage during the settlement of Kentucky and the Ohio Valley in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
The town of Middlesborough, built in the crater, was established in 1886 to exploit iron and coal deposits [1], although the town's founder, Alexander A. Arthur, apparently did not know of the crater's extraterrestrial origin. While coal mining is still the town's primary economic driver, local leaders hope to turn the crater into a tourist destination.[2] In 2003, the Kentucky Society of Professional Geologists designated the area a Distinguished Geologic Site,[3] and the construction of the Cumberland Gap Tunnel makes the town a convenient source of supplies for visitors to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.
References
- ^ "Middlesboro". Earth Impact Database. University of New Brunswick. http://www.passc.net/EarthImpactDatabase/middlesboro.html. Retrieved 2008-12-30.
- ^ Associated Press (2003-09-20). "Kentucky town sees a future in its crater". St. Petersburg Times. http://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/20/Worldandnation/Kentucky_town_sees_a_.shtml. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
- ^ Kortenkamp, Steve (Summer 2004). "Impact at Cumberland Gap: Where Natural and National History Collide". PSI Newsletter 5 (2): 1–2. http://www.psi.edu/sites/default/files/imported/news/newsletter/summer04/Summer04.pdf.
Coordinates: 36°37′N 83°44′W / 36.617°N 83.733°W
Visitor Attractions of the Eastern Mountain Coal Fields Parks StateBuckhorn Lake • Carr Creek • Carter Caves • Cumberland Falls • Dr. Thomas Walker • Fishtrap Lake • Grayson Lake • Greenbo Lake • Jenny Wiley • Kingdom Come • Levi Jackson Wilderness Road • Natural Bridge • Paintsville Lake • Pine Mountain • Pine Mountain Trail • Yatesville Lake
FederalInterstate
Museums Barthell Coal Mining Camp • Bell County Coal House & Museum • Bell County Historical Society Museum • Big Sandy Heritage Center • Blue Heron Coal Mining Camp • Bobby Davis Museum and Park • Breathitt County Museum • C.B. Caudill Store & History Center • Cloverfork Museum • Coal Miners' Museum • Cumberland Inn Museum • David A. Zegeer Coal-Railroad Museum • East Kentucky Science Center • Elkhorn City Railroad Museum • Harland Sanders Café & Museum • Highlands Museum and Discovery Center • Kentucky Coal Mining Museum • Kentucky Folk Art Center • Knox Historical Museum • Magoffin County Pioneer Village and Museum • Marie Stewart Museum & Craft Shop • McCreary County Museum • Morgan County History Museum • Mountain Homeplace • Mountain Life Museum • Northeastern Kentucky Museum • Swamp Valley Museum • U.S. 23 Country Music Highway Museum • Wolfe County History Museum
Forests Daniel Boone • Dewey Lake • Jefferson • Kentenia • Kentucky Ridge • Robinson • Tygarts
Reservoirs Buckhorn Lake • Carr Creek Lake • Cave Run Lake • Cranks Creek Lake • Lake Cumberland • Dewey Lake • Fishtrap Lake • Grayson Lake • Greenbo Lake • Laurel River Lake • Martins Fork Lake • Paintsville Lake • Yatesville Lake
Natural features Black Mountain • Cumberland Falls • Cumberland Gap • Eagle Falls • Middlesboro crater • Pine Mountain • Pound Gap • Raven Rock • Red River Gorge • Tri-State Peak • Yahoo Arch • Yahoo Falls
Miscellaneous Bad Branch Falls State Nature Preserve • Bat Cave and Cascade Caverns State Nature Preserves • Big South Fork Scenic Railway • Black Mountain Off-Road Adventure Area • Cumberland Gap Tunnel • Mayo Mansion • Middle Creek Battlefield • Pikeville Cut-Through • Samuel May House • Sheltowee Trace Trail
Categories:- Earth Impact Database
- Geography of Bell County, Kentucky
- Impact craters of the United States
- Geography of Kentucky
- Geology of Kentucky
- Permian impact craters
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