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Flynn Creek Crater Sample Collection: Drill core photos from drill core collected in 1967 and 1977-1979.

Published by U.S. Geological Survey | Department of the Interior | Catalog Last Checked: May 05, 2026 at 07:54 PM | Dataset Last Updated: February 04, 2026 at 12:00 AM
Flynn Creek crater is a ~3.8 km diameter, >200 m deep, flat-floored impact structure that formed ~360 Ma in what is now north-central Tennessee (36°17’ N, 85°40’ W) [1-4]. Between 1967 and 1979, USGS scientist Dr. David Roddy conducted a drilling program at Flynn Creek crater, an invaluable terrestrial analog that can be applied to the field of planetary impact cratering dynamics [5,6]. The drilling program produced more than 3.8 km of nearly continuous core from 18 separate bore holes [7]. These samples are now contained in 2,621 standard core storage boxes at the USGS in Flagstaff, Arizona and each box has been photographed. [1] Roddy, D.J. (1977a) Impact and Explosion Cratering, Pergamon Press, New York, 125-161; [2] Roddy, D. J. (1977b) Impact and Explosion Cratering, Pergamon Press, New York, 277-308; [3] Evenick, J. C. (2006) Field Guide to the Flynn Creek Impact Structure. Knoxville: University of Tennessee. 22 pg; [4] Wilson, C.W., and Roddy, D.J. (1990), Geologic map and mineral resources summary of the Gainesboro quadrangle, Tennessee: Tennessee Division of Geology, GM 325-SW, Scale 1:24,000; [5] Hagerty, J.J. et al. (2013) 4th Planetary Crater Consortium, Abstract #1304; [6] Hagerty, J.J. et al. (2013) 44th LPSC, Abstract #2122; [7] Roddy, D.J. (1980) 11th LPSC, Abstract #1335.

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