Foelsche
Key facts
- Country
- Australia
- Diameter
- 6 km
- Age
- more than about 545 million years
- Location
- 16.67° S, 136.78° E
A ring of sandstone hills in the remote country south-west of Borroloola, Northern Territory, near the Gulf of Carpentaria.
Foelsche is an eroded impact structure about 6 km across in the Northern Territory of Australia, south-west of the town of Borroloola, in the region near the Gulf of Carpentaria.
What it hit. The impactor struck Proterozoic sandstones and other sedimentary rocks, more than a billion years old.
Proof of impact. Geologists found breccia, shatter cones and quartz grains with shock features, which confirmed an impact.
Age. The age is poorly known. The structure was eroded and then covered by Cambrian sediments, so the impact must have happened more than about 545 million years ago.
Why it matters. Foelsche is one of a group of very old impact structures in northern Australia, along with Strangways, Goyder, Liverpool and Matt Wilson, preserved because the region's ancient rocks have been geologically quiet for hundreds of millions of years. The impactor is unknown.
Visiting. The area is remote and much of it is Aboriginal land or pastoral lease. Ask permission before entering.
Did you know?
Foelsche is more than about 545 million years old.
It was later covered by Cambrian sediments, which give its minimum age.
It is one of several ancient impact structures in northern Australia.