REVEALED: Two asteroids crashed into Earth's ocean at the SAME TIMEGEOLOGISTS have discovered the craters of two large asteroids they believed crashed into earth simultaneously.
By Jon Austin
18:40, Mon, Sep 21, 2015 | UPDATED: 18:54, Mon, Sep 21, 2015
Artist impression of the two asteroids striking in the ocean ten miles apartDONDIXEN•ERIKSTURKELL•UNIVERSITYofGOTHENBURG
Artist impression of the two asteroids striking in the ocean ten miles apart
Scientists from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden found the impact craters just ten miles apart in Jämtland, Sweden.
It is believed they are the world's first confirmed simultaneous significant craters.
One of them is a huge 4.7miles wide, while the other spans 1.3miles across.
The space rocks, which struck in the sea, would have caused devastating tsunamis, and could have even wiped out some species, scientists believe.
Erik Sturkell, professor of geophysics at the university, said: "Around 470 million years ago, two large asteroids collided in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and many fragments were thrown off in new orbits. Many of these crashed on Earth, such as these two in Jämtland.
"Information from drilling operations demonstrates that identical sequences are present in the two craters, and the sediment above the impact sequences is of the same age.
"In other words, these are simultaneous impacts."
At the time Jämtland was under a shallow sea.
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The twin impact could have had devastating effects like the subsequent asteroid which finished off the dinosaurs 65 million years agoGETTY
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Two large asteroids collided in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and many fragments were thrown off in new orbits. Many of these crashed on Earth, such as these two in Jämtland
Erik Sturkell, professor of geophysics at the University of Gothenburg,
The meteorites struck spots where the water reached just over 1,600 feet, shooting water away upon impact, so for about 100 seconds, the new craters were dry.
Mr Sturkell added: "The water then rushed back in, bringing with it fragments from the meteorites mixed with material that had been ejected during the explosion and with the gigantic wave that tore away parts of the sea bed."
The academics believe the two impact sites could hold clues to extinction events on earth as other impact craters have been linked to mass extinctions by scientists.
The Chicxulub crater in Mexico was determined to be about 65million years old, and is believed to have triggered the end of the dinosaurs.
Another crater, found in Antarctica, may have caused the greatest mass extinction on Earth, some 250 million years ago.
Scientists suggest that this impact may have played a role in the breakup of the Gondwana supercontinent.
Doomsday theorists are claiming a huge asteroid will wipe out life as we know it between tomorrow and September 28.
But, although we have a number of so-called near earth passes scheduled over the next few days, US space agency Nasa says nothing is scheduled to hit earth for several hundred years.
