Asteroid Crater Nördlinger Ries

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The Nördlinger Ries is a unique natural area that has been shaped by the impact of an asteroid 15 million years ago.

Geology and natural environment

National Geopark Ries

The Nördlinger Ries and its surroundings have been certified as a National Geopark since 2006 and were included in the global network of UNESCO Geoparks in April 2022. The Geopark website offers lots of information on geology, nature trails and hikes, as well as on the culture and history of the region.

Geotopes

Geological features and in the Ries are signposted in many places with explanations of the impact and formation of the rocks. In addition to the geotopes of the Geopark Ries, there are other geotopes of the Bavarian State Office for the Environment (LfU). Its website provides extensive information on the geotopes, crater formation and research in the Nördlinger Ries.

Steinheim Basin

The Steinheim Basin is another meteorite crater and is located around 40 km southwest of the Ries Crater. Extensive information on the crater, which is almost 4 km in diameter, is also available at the Meteor Crater Museum in the Steinheim Basin.

Geopark Schwäbische Alb

To the west of the Ries is the Unesco Geopark Swabian Alb, where there are also many geological and scenic highlights to discover.

Asteroid Crater

The giant crater was formed 15 million years ago by the impact of an asteroid. But what exactly are asteroids, how do they differ from comets and where do meteorites actually come from? Answers to these and other questions on the subject can be found in our museum. In addition, the following pages also offer exciting information on the subject of asteroids, meteorites and impact craters.

  • The pages of NASA, ESA and DLR contain a wide range of information on topics such as space travel, current missions and asteroids.
  • The Natural History Museum Vienna also offers some exciting digital information on the subject of meteorites.
  • The Vigie-Cratère project invites you to take part in current research into meteorite and asteroid craters:
    Around two hundred impact craters on Earth are currently known, but there are probably still some to be discovered. In particular, many craters with smaller diameters of one to six kilometers are probably still undiscovered. Through the project, you can help to search satellite data for circular crater structures – and perhaps discover a new meteorite crater yourself.