Shunak
Key facts
- Country
- Kazakhstan
- Diameter
- 2.8 km
- Age
- about 45 ± 10 million years
- Location
- 47.22° N, 72.77° E
A round crater about 3 km across in the semi-desert of central Kazakhstan, with a raised rim of broken volcanic rock.
Shunak is a small impact crater about 2.8 km across in the semi-desert of Karaganda Province, central Kazakhstan.
What can be seen. The crater is a round bowl with a raised rim, partly filled with younger sediments. In the dry climate it is clearly visible on satellite images.
What it hit. The impactor struck Palaeozoic volcanic rocks, mainly lavas and tuffs of Devonian age.
Proof of impact. Soviet geologists studied the crater and found breccias and minerals with shock features, which confirmed an impact. The crater has been drilled.
Age. The age is poorly known. It is usually given as about 45 million years, with an uncertainty of about 10 million years.
Why it matters. Shunak is a well-preserved small crater in volcanic rock. The impactor is unknown.
Did you know?
Shunak formed in ancient volcanic rocks.
The crater is clearly visible on satellite images.
Its rim is made of broken volcanic rock.