Quebecer's pit confirmed as 390-million-year-old meteorite crater

A meteorite impact crater that formed nearly 390 million years ago has been confirmed in Quebec, after a local man first noticed a mysterious pit on his property. The crater, located in the municipality of Saint-Jean-de-Dieu in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, was identified by Joël Lapointe, who spotted a circular depression while using satellite imagery. Scientists from the Université du Québec à Montréal and the University of Western Ontario have now verified the site as a meteorite impact crater, making it the 11th confirmed impact crater in Quebec and the 31st in Canada. The crater measures about 2.5 kilometers in diameter and is believed to have been created during the Devonian period, when a meteorite struck the area. This discovery matters because impact craters are rare and provide valuable insights into Earth's geological history and the frequency of cosmic collisions. The confirmation came after field studies and analysis of rock samples, which showed evidence of shock metamorphism—a key indicator of a meteorite impact. Lapointe's initial observation in 2019 led to further investigation by researchers, who published their findings in the journal Meteoritics & Planetary Science. The crater is now protected under Quebec's heritage laws, and researchers plan to continue studying the site to learn more about the impact event and its effects on the local geology. This discovery highlights the importance of citizen science, as Lapointe's curiosity helped uncover a significant geological feature hidden in plain sight.