The Falklands, an archipelago off the coast of Argentina, are hiding a pretty big secret. Northwest of West Falkland Island and dating back to the late Paleozoic Era around the time of the extinction of more than 90% of life on the planet, an event known as The Great Dying or the Permian Extinction. Impact craters are caused by an asteroid or meteor. Over 200 such instances have been discovered around the globe. The Falklands crater measures more than 150 miles in diameter at its widest. The crater, if confirmed, will be the second largest on Earth, the largest being the Vredefort Crater in South Africa (over 190 miles across). The basin is completely covered by younger sediments which indicates that this feature formed long before the surroundings. Back in Argentina, it was widely accepted that the nearby Chicxulub impact crater was the source of the mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous Period. However, while the two craters share similarities, the qualities of this crater near the Falklands signify that it could be the true culprit. The discovery was led by Max Rocca from Argentina’s Planetary Society. The evidence found at the Falklands crater strongly suggests that it was caused by a great impact. Scientists on the scene detected strong magnetic anomalies in the area which suggests a distinct variation in the types of rocks found at the site. Namely the fact that the magnetism at the site is much stronger than in the surrounding areas. Gravitational variations were also detected which suggests that this crater is in fact the product of a huge impact. Studying this crater could lead to more discoveries surrounding the mass extinction that took place 250 million years ago such as where the asteroid came from and what chain of events led to the extinction of over 90% of the life on Earth. Further examination is necessary in this basin to determine its origins but once unearthed, it could shed some more light on the mass extinction event. We’re always trying to stay on top of impactful (get it?) magnet-related news. If you’d like to stay on top of it, too, follow along on our News & How-Tos blog where we post all of our updates and findings. What are you interested in reading about on this blog? Share your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter.