Scientists Confirm 3.02-Billion-Year-Old Impact Crater in Australia as Earth's Oldest

Using two independent dating methods, scientists have reaffirmed that the North Pole Dome crater in Western Australia's Pilbara region is 3.02 billion years old, making it the oldest known impact crater on Earth. The study, published on June 23 in Geology, analyzed zircon and apatite minerals within shatter cones—rock structures formed by the meteorite strike. Lead author Chris Kirkland of Curtin University says the dual mineral clocks provide "smoking-gun" evidence. The initial 2025 estimate of 3.47 billion years was revised downward, but the new age still surpasses the previous record-holder, Yarrabubba crater (2.2 billion years). However, skepticism persists. Alec Brenner of Harvard, who co-authored a 2024 paper arguing the crater is less than 2.7 billion years old, maintains that shatter cones in nearby 2.77-billion-year-old rocks require a younger impact. He suggests the dated minerals may record an unrelated hydrothermal event. Kirkland counters that direct dating of impact-altered rocks is more reliable than remote correlations. The crater sits in the Pilbara Craton, home to some of Earth's oldest rocks (up to 3.6 billion years), offering a rare window into planetary formation. The study was reported by Sara Hashemi for Smithsonian Magazine.