The Chesapeake Bay Impact Crater
The International Continental Scientific Drilling Program and the U.S. Geological Survey drilled a 1,766-m-deep test hole near the center of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure in 2005 and 2006. Learn more here.
Publications summary
See a summary of publications on this topic listed here and under the "Publications" tab.
Professional Papers
- Professional Paper 1612
- Powars, D.S., and Bruce, T.S., 1999, The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geological framework and correlation of hydrogeologic units of the Lower York-James Peninsula, Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1612, 82 p.
- Prepared in cooperation with the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission
- Professional Paper 1622 [PDF format]
- Powars, D.S., 2000, The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geologic framework and the correlation of hydrogeologic units of Southeastern Virginia, south of the James River: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1622, 53 p.
- Prepared in cooperation with the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission
- Professional Paper 1688 [PDF format]
- Horton, J. Wright, Jr., Powars, David S., and Gohn, Gregory S., 2005, Studies of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure : The USGS-NASA Langley corehole, Hampton, Virginia, and related coreholes and geophysical surveys: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1688, 464 p., 2 plates.
Open-file reports
- OFR-01-87 [PDF format]
- Gohn, G.S., Clark, A.C., Queen, D.G., Levine, J.S., McFarland, E.R., and Powars, D.S., 2001, Operational summary for the USGS-NASA Langley corehole, Hampton, Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-87-A, 21 p.
- Powars, D.S., Bruce, T.S., Bybell, L.M., Cronin, T.M., Edwards, L.E., Frederiksen, N.O., Gohn, G.S., Horton, J.W., Jr., Izett, G.A., Johnson, G.H., Levine, J.S., McFarland, E.R., Poag, C.W., Quick, J.E., Schindler, J.S., Self-Trail, J.M., Smith, M.J., Stamm, R.G., and Weems, R.E., 2001, Preliminary geologic summary for the USGS-NASA Langley corehole, Hampton, Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-87-B, 20 p.
- Prepared in cooperation with the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission and the NASA Langley Research Center
- OFR-01-407 [PDF format]
- Catchings, R.D., Saulter, D.E., Powars, D.S., Goldman, M.R., Dingler, J.A., Gohn, G.S., Schindler, J.S., and Johnson, G.H., 2001, High-resolution seismic reflection/refraction images near the outer margin of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater, York-James Peninsula, southeastern Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-407, 18 p.
- OFR 2004-1016 [PDF format]
- Edwards, L.E., Horton, J.W., Jr., and Gohn, G.S., 2004, ICDP-USGS Workshop on deep drilling in the central crater of the Chesapeake Bay impact structure, Virginia, USA, September 22-24, 2003: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2004-1016, CD.
- Prepared in cooperation with the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP)
- OFR 2007-1094 [PDF format]
- Gohn, Gregory S., Sanford, Ward E., Powars, David S., Horton, J. Wright, Jr., Edwards, Lucy E., Morin, Roger H., Self-Trail, Jean M., 2007, Site Report for USGS test holes drilled at Cape Charles, Northampton County, Virginia, in 2004: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2007-1094, 22 p.
Related Content
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
High-resolution seismic reflection/refraction images near the outer margin of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater, York-James Peninsula, southeastern Virginia
Powars and Bruce (1999) showed that the Chesapeake Bay region of southeastern Virginia was the site of an asteroid or comet impact during the late Eocene, approximately 35 million years ago (Fig. 1). Initial borehole and marine seismic-reflection data revealed a 90-km-diameter impact structure, referred to as the Chesapeake Bay Impact Crater (CBIC), that lies buried beneath the southern Chesapeake
Authors
R. D. Catchings, D.E. Saulter, D.S. Powars, M. R. Goldman, J.A. Dingler, G. S. Gohn, J. S. Schindler, G.H. Johnson
The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geologic framework and the correlation of hydrogeologic units of southeastern Virginia, south of the James River
About 35 million years ago, a large comet or meteor slammed into the shallow shelf on the western margin of the Atlantic Ocean, creating the Chesapeake Bay impact crater. This report, the second in a series, refines the geologic framework of southeastern Virginia, south of the James River in and near the impact crater, and presents evidence for the existence of a pre-impact James River structural
Authors
David S. Powars
The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geological framework and correlation of hydrogeologic units of the lower York-James Peninsula, Virginia
This report documents the highly variable structure, stratigraphy, and buried topography of the outer rim of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater created by its impact and burial. Lithologies of cores are correlated with borehole geophysical logs to characterize the physical properties of the stratigraphic units and their geophysical signatures. The correlation between cores, well cuttings, and boreho
Authors
David S. Powars, Bruce T. Scott
Related Content
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
Below are publications associated with this project.
High-resolution seismic reflection/refraction images near the outer margin of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater, York-James Peninsula, southeastern Virginia
Powars and Bruce (1999) showed that the Chesapeake Bay region of southeastern Virginia was the site of an asteroid or comet impact during the late Eocene, approximately 35 million years ago (Fig. 1). Initial borehole and marine seismic-reflection data revealed a 90-km-diameter impact structure, referred to as the Chesapeake Bay Impact Crater (CBIC), that lies buried beneath the southern Chesapeake
Authors
R. D. Catchings, D.E. Saulter, D.S. Powars, M. R. Goldman, J.A. Dingler, G. S. Gohn, J. S. Schindler, G.H. Johnson
The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geologic framework and the correlation of hydrogeologic units of southeastern Virginia, south of the James River
About 35 million years ago, a large comet or meteor slammed into the shallow shelf on the western margin of the Atlantic Ocean, creating the Chesapeake Bay impact crater. This report, the second in a series, refines the geologic framework of southeastern Virginia, south of the James River in and near the impact crater, and presents evidence for the existence of a pre-impact James River structural
Authors
David S. Powars
The effects of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater on the geological framework and correlation of hydrogeologic units of the lower York-James Peninsula, Virginia
This report documents the highly variable structure, stratigraphy, and buried topography of the outer rim of the Chesapeake Bay impact crater created by its impact and burial. Lithologies of cores are correlated with borehole geophysical logs to characterize the physical properties of the stratigraphic units and their geophysical signatures. The correlation between cores, well cuttings, and boreho
Authors
David S. Powars, Bruce T. Scott