Beneath the quiet pastures near Deniliquin, where the Riverina flattens toward the Murray, a geologist's patient reading of old magnetic data has suggested that the land may hold the scar of a vast impact from long ago. Such a claim, if it survives the test of the drill, would place a buried hollow larger than any crater yet confirmed on Earth. For now it remains a story told through instruments rather than stone, waiting for the slow human work that could turn inference into knowledge.
Deniliquin's buried 'giant' revives asteroid impact theory, still awaiting physical proof
Nothing else on Earth would compare to it. For now, no one has put a drill into it.
Mark
Why is this getting attention again if nothing new has happened?
Mimi
That's the odd part. The renewed interest comes with no publicly announced progress on the next stage of research. It's the size of the claim that keeps people coming back.
Mark
And how big is it, exactly?
Mimi
Researchers estimate about 520 kilometres across. That's bigger than Vredefort in South Africa, the largest confirmed crater, and far bigger than Chicxulub in Mexico.
Luke
I'd stress the word estimate. That figure comes from the researchers' interpretation of geophysical data, not from anyone measuring a crater.
Mark
What is the evidence so far?
Mimi
Data collected between 2015 and 2020 suggests a circular formation under the Murray and Riverina regions, with a dome-shaped feature at the centre and magnetic patterns often linked to major impacts.
Luke
Often linked, not exclusively. Those patterns are consistent with an impact, but they aren't the proof. Dr Glikson himself has said shock deformation can only be found by drilling deep.
Mark
So what would settle it?
Mimi
Deep drilling or major seismic testing. Nothing has been publicly announced on either.
Luke
Which means anyone calling it the world's largest impact site is getting ahead of the evidence. Right now it's a proposed structure, and the source doesn't say when or whether drilling will happen.
Mark
And for people in Deniliquin?
Mimi
It's a local connection to a possible landmark discovery. Tony Yeates visited in 2023 as a guest of Edward River Council and U3A.
El Pulso
- A proposed 520-kilometre buried impact structure beneath the Riverina could eclipse every known crater on Earth.
- The claim rests on geophysical readings from 2015 to 2020, not yet on physical rock samples.
- Confirming it would require deep drilling or major seismic testing, and neither has been publicly scheduled.
- Local interest is rising in Deniliquin, yet the theory now sits in suspension until the next critical research stage begins.
Beneath the quiet pastures near Deniliquin, where the Riverina flattens toward the Murray, a geologist's patient reading of old magnetic data has suggested that the land may hold the scar of a vast impact from long ago. Such a claim, if it survives the test of the drill, would place a buried hollow larger than any crater yet confirmed on Earth. For now it remains a story told through instruments rather than stone, waiting for the slow human work that could turn inference into knowledge.
Roughly 32 kilometres north-west of Deniliquin, around Pretty Pine and Stevens Weir, researchers believe the centre of something enormous lies buried beneath the Riverina. If real, it would be the remains of an asteroid strike larger than anything else on Earth. So far, no one has drilled into it.
The idea, called the Deniliquin structure, began with geologist Tony Yeates, who noticed unusual magnetic signatures in Darling Basin data more than twenty years ago. In 2023, he and Dr Andrew Glikson published updated geophysical findings from 2015 to 2020, describing a dome-shaped feature and a vast circular formation under the Murray and Riverina. The structure is estimated at about 520 kilometres across, dwarfing South Africa's Vredefort and Mexico's Chicxulub.
The evidence is still indirect. Proving an impact requires physical shock deformation, which Dr Glikson has said can only be found by drilling deep. Until drilling or seismic work begins, the Deniliquin structure remains one of Australia's most intriguing geological mysteries, and the next announcement of such work will decide whether the theory holds.
Roughly 32 kilometres north-west of Deniliquin, in the country around Pretty Pine and Stevens Weir, researchers believe the centre of something enormous lies buried beneath the Riverina. It would be the remains of an asteroid strike, and if the idea holds up, nothing else on Earth would compare to it. For now, no one has put a drill into it.
The proposal is known as the Deniliquin structure, and it was first identified by geologist Tony Yeates. By his account, he came across it more than two decades ago while reviewing geological data from the Darling Basin. What caught his attention were unusual magnetic signatures beneath the landscape. Over time they led him to conclude that the area might hold the remnants of a colossal impact.
The idea reached a wide audience in 2023, when Mr Yeates and Dr Andrew Glikson, a geologist and climate scientist, published research based on updated geophysical data collected between 2015 and 2020. Their findings pointed to a vast circular formation hidden deep under the Murray and Riverina regions. They described a dome-shaped feature at its centre, along with distinctive magnetic patterns often associated with major impact events.
The scale is what makes the claim so striking. Researchers estimate the multi-ring structure spans about 520 kilometres in diameter. That would make it substantially larger than South Africa's Vredefort structure, currently recognised as the largest confirmed impact crater in the world. It would also dwarf Mexico's Chicxulub crater, which is linked to the extinction of the dinosaurs.
Mr Yeates visited Deniliquin in 2023 as a guest of Edward River Council and U3A. For residents, the theory has remained a fascinating local connection to what could be one of the most significant geological discoveries ever made.
The case, however, is still built on indirect evidence. The geophysical readings have continued to strengthen the argument, but researchers acknowledge that definitive proof remains elusive. Dr Glikson has previously said that physical evidence of shock deformation, the hallmark of an impact event, can only be obtained by drilling deep into the structure.
That is the next critical stage, and it would involve either deep drilling or major seismic testing. The renewed interest comes despite no publicly announced progress on either. Until one of them happens, the Deniliquin structure remains one of Australia's most intriguing geological mysteries. What to watch for is any announcement of drilling or seismic work, because that is where the theory would be confirmed or fall away.
Citas Notables
Physical evidence of shock deformation, the hallmark of an impact event, can only be obtained by drilling deep into the structure (paraphrased).— Dr Andrew Glikson
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