3.5 billion-year-old crater created by meteorite impact found in Australia, scientists say
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(AUSTRALIA) — The discovery of a massive crater formed by the impact of a meteorite more than three billion years ago is changing the way scientists view the history of Earth and the planet’s stages of evolution.
Researchers in Australia found the crater in Western Australia’s Pilbara region and believe it’s the oldest impact crater in the world, at about 3.5 billion years old. That surpasses the previous record-holding impact crater by more than 1.25 billion years, according to a paper published in Nature Communications on Thursday.
A distinctive rock formation helped the research team locate the Pilbara crater. “Exceptionally preserved” shatter cones – that is, cone-shaped fractures found in rocks that have been subjected to extreme pressure from a shock wave – were located near the impact site, a 62-mile-wide area now called North Pole Dome, the scientists said.
The shatter cones offer “unequivocal evidence” of a very high-speed impact about 3.47 billion years ago, the researchers said. The meteorite likely struck Earth at more than 22,370 miles per hour, according to the paper.
The “major planetary event” would have resulted in a crater more than 60 miles wide, the researchers said.
In addition, the Pilbara crater sheds new light on how meteorites shaped the Earth’s early environment, said Chris Kirkland, a geologist at Curtin University in Australia and co-lead author of the study, in a statement.
The meteorite strike may have even contributed to the formation of cratons, which are large, stable landmasses that became the foundation of continents, Kirkland said.
The impact could have kicked up rock deep beneath the earth that eventually spread globally as the meteorite strike sent debris flying. The age of the impact is “statistically indistinguishable” from old rock beds in South Africa, according to the study.
“[T]he tremendous amount of energy from this impact could have played a role in shaping early Earth’s crust by pushing one part of the Earth’s crust under another, or by forcing magma to rise from deep within the Earth’s mantle toward the surface,” Kirkland said.
Previous research indicates that large impacts were common in the early solar system, said Tim Johnson, a geologist at Curtin University and a co-author of the paper, in a statement. The moon itself, with more than a million craters exceeding one kilometer (.62 miles) in diameter, is evidence of “intense bombardment,” according to the paper.
Impact craters also create friendly environments for microbial life, such as hot water pools, Kirkland said. The East Pilbara Terrain, which is part of the Pilbara Craton, contains an approximately 125-mile-diameter landmass containing mostly Paleoarchaean cratonic crust, estimated to be about 3.48 billion years old, according to the paper.
The second-oldest impact crater, estimated to have been created about 2.2 billion years ago, is also located in Western Australia, southwest of Pilbara, in Yarrabubba.
The discovery of the Pilbara crater challenges previous assumptions about the planet’s ancient history and provides a “crucial piece of the puzzle of Earth’s impact,” Johnson said.
The findings also suggest there could be other ancient craters on Earth waiting to be discovered, according to Johnson.
“Until now, the absence of any truly ancient craters means they are largely ignored by geologists,” he said.
(LONDON) — Talks are ongoing between Paris and Kyiv for the possible deployment of French troops inside Ukraine despite the ongoing war with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post to social media.
Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron “had a detailed discussion about the situation on the battlefield and the progress of Ukrainian forces in the Kursk operation,” the Ukrainian leader said in a Monday night post to X.
“We also agreed to work closely with key allies on achieving peace and developing effective security guarantees,” Zelenskyy added.
“As one such guarantee, we discussed the French initiative to deploy military contingents in Ukraine,” he continued. “We addressed practical steps for its implementation, potential expansion and the involvement of other nations in this effort.”
Macron and top French officials have repeatedly hinted at the possibility of deploying a French military contingent to Ukraine in a variety of non-combat roles.
French troops, Macron has said, could train Ukrainian soldiers inside the country or serve as peacekeepers to help maintain any forthcoming ceasefire agreement.
Ukrainian military analysts have also suggested that French troops could replace Ukrainian forces guarding the country’s borders with Belarus and Transnistria — the Russian-aligned separatist state in eastern Moldova — thus freeing up Ukrainian troops for combat duties.
Macron’s suggestion of NATO boots on the ground in Ukraine drew rebukes from Russia. In June, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters that “no instructor involved in training the Ukrainian military has immunity.” He added, “It doesn’t matter whether they’re French or not.”
Macron also faced domestic criticism. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said the president “plays the war leader, but it is the lives of our children that he speaks about with such carelessness.”
Far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon said sending French troops to Ukraine would “make us belligerents.”
Within NATO, Macron’s suggestion won some support, particularly on the bloc’s eastern flank where nations bordering Russia have generally urged a more assertive allied strategy in aiding Ukraine and containing Moscow.
But key nations like the U.S., Germany and U.K. expressed discomfort with any suggestion of allied troops operating on Ukrainian soil.
Macron framed his proposal as a pursuit of “strategic ambiguity” that could be achieved without “crossing the threshold of belligerence.” The president acknowledged last year there was no allied consensus on deploying troops.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in November that Western allies should “not set and express red lines” related to their support for Ukraine.
(LONDON) — Germany’s defense minister criticized President Donald Trump for what he called “regrettable” concessions to Moscow, after the president unilaterally announced an immediate start to direct peace talks with President Vladimir Putin to end the Kremlin’s war on Ukraine.
Trump said in a post to social media on Wednesday that he spoke with Putin by phone, adding the two leaders “agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately” to end the fighting in Ukraine after nearly three years of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Trump’s announcement came shortly after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told allies that Ukraine cannot liberate all territory occupied by Russian forces and will not be given NATO security protection as part of any peace deal.
NATO ministers quickly pushed back. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said it was “regrettable” that “the Trump administration has already made public concessions to Putin before negotiations have even begun.”
Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur concurred. “We must not hand Russia any advantage before negotiations even begin,” Pevkur said in a statement.
Moscow launched its attack in February 2022 with the aim of toppling Zelenskyy’s government in Kyiv and annexing swaths of the country. The “special military operation” — as the Kremlin termed the invasion — expanded on Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and its fomentation of, and active military support for, separatist rebellion in parts of eastern Ukraine in 2014.
“I think we’re on the way to getting peace,” Trump said. The president did not clarify whether Ukraine and its President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be directly involved in any peace talks. Excluding Kyiv would align with Putin’s repeated demand that Ukraine be sidelined, the Russian leader having dismissed Zelenskyy as “illegitimate.”
Kyiv’s omission from negotiations would represent a striking break from years of U.S. and allied policy, which under former President Joe Biden was guided by the “nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine” principle, with the former president also refusing to speak directly with Putin while the war continued.
Trump spoke with Zelenskyy after his phone call with Putin. The Ukrainian leader said in a post to social media that the two discussed “opportunities to achieve peace, discussed our readiness to work together at the team level, and Ukraine’s technological capabilities — including drones and other advanced industries.”
Trump also said he would meet with Putin in Saudi Arabia, though did not set a date. Addressing the conversation, Trump said on Truth Social that Zelensky,”like President Putin, wants to make PEACE.”
Trump separately hinted at the expiry of Zelenskyy’s presidential term. Ukraine was due to hold presidential elections last year, but the vote was delayed as the country is still under martial law as a result of Russia’s invasion. At “some point you’re going to have an election,” Trump said.
Ukraine and American allies in Europe called for a unified negotiating front.
“We are looking forward to discussing the way ahead together with our American allies,” said a joint statement from the foreign ministers of France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Spain, the U.K., Ukraine, the European Union’s European External Action Service and the European Commission.
“Our shared objectives should be to put Ukraine in a position of strength,” the statement added. “Ukraine and Europe must be part of any negotiations.”
Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign affairs chief, said on X, “Ukraine’s independence and territorial integrity are unconditional.”
Trump said a meeting between Zelenskyy, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio was scheduled during the weekend Munich Security Conference event in Germany.
The State Department said that Ukraine-Russia envoy Keith Kellogg will begin a 10-day visit to Germany, Belgium and Ukraine on Thursday.
Hegseth preceded Trump’s latest remarks by telling allies in Belgium on Wednesday that Ukraine cannot liberate all territory from Russian occupation, and that Kyiv will not be given NATO security protection as part of any peace deal.
“The bloodshed must stop and this war must end,” Hegseth said. His address was the most detailed delineation of the Trump administration’s desired peace deal since the president returned to the Oval Office. Pro-talk signals from the U.S. raised concerns in Ukraine and abroad that Kyiv will be forced into territorial and political concessions in exchange for an end to the fighting.
John Bolton — Trump’s former national security adviser — for example, said on X that the president’s approach is tantamount to a “sell out” of Ukraine. “Trump has effectively surrendered to Putin on Ukraine.”
The latest remarks from Trump and Hegseth also stoked concerns inside Ukraine. “It’s a bad sign that he has talked first to Putin, not to Zelenskyy,” Oleksandr Merezhko — a member of the Ukrainian parliament and the chair of the body’s foreign affairs committee — told ABC News.
“Such a phone call is in itself a reward for Putin,” he added. “It’s sort of a break in his political isolation.” Still, Merezhko said Trump’s approach does “not quite” mean a total exclusion of Ukraine. “The principle ‘nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine’ is more about not taking decisions without Ukraine which have influence upon Ukraine,” he said.
Pressure for peace is building within and without. A Gallup poll published in November indicated that most Ukrainians favored a rapid end to the devastating war. Zelenskyy’s public rhetoric largely reflects this sentiment, though the president has warned that no peace deal is sustainable without concrete U.S. security guarantees.
“This war of attrition is only going to make us weaker,” Iuliia Mendel — Zelenskyy’s former press secretary — told ABC News. “For a long time, Ukraine has been at the stage when negotiations are urgent to save the nation.”
The Kremlin confirmed that Trump had spoken with Putin.
“The topic of a settlement in Ukraine was discussed,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters after the call on Wednesday.
“President Trump spoke in favor of an early end to hostilities and a peaceful solution to the problem,” he added. “President Putin, for his part, mentioned the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict and agreed with Trump that a long-term settlement can be achieved through peaceful negotiations.”
On Thursday, Peskov told reporters that Moscow had begun preparing a negotiating group to organize a meeting between Trump and Putin. “Definitely started. And as the president makes the appropriate decisions, we will inform you,” Peskov said.
When asked if a visit by U.S. representatives to Moscow is expected in the near future, Peskov said: “Not yet. So far, there are no specific agreements in this regard.”
Both Moscow and Kyiv are maneuvering for leverage in preparation for revived talks. This week, Russia and the U.S. concluded a prisoner swap described by Trump as a goodwill gesture that could help advance peace talks.
Zelenskyy, meanwhile, met with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Kyiv to discuss a potential deal to secure U.S. access to hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Ukrainian minerals.
Russian and Ukrainian leaders have both expressed readiness to resume negotiations, though neither side has indicated willingness to make significant concessions.
This week, Zelenskyy suggested Ukraine would be ready to give up territory it seized in Russia’s western Kursk region in exchange for the liberation of some Ukrainian territory occupied by Moscow’s troops.
Peskov dismissed the idea as “impossible” at a Wednesday briefing with journalists. “Russia has never discussed an exchange of its territories and never will,” Peskov said.
“Naturally, Ukrainian units will be ousted from this territory. Everyone who is not eliminated will be ousted,” Peskov added.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky, Anastasia Bagaeva, Nataliia Popova, Zoe Magee, Tanya Stukalova and Tom Soufi Burridge contributed to this report.
(MOSCOW) — An American citizen, Evgeny “Eugene” Spector, was sentenced to 15 years in a high-security prison by the Moscow City Court on espionage charges on Dec. 24, reported Interfax, a Russian news agency.
The Russian Security Service, or FSB, said Spector collected information from Russia “in the interests of the Pentagon to create a system for genetic screening of the Russian population,” Interfax reported on Friday.
“We are aware of reports of the sentencing of a U.S. citizen in Russia. We are monitoring the situation but have no further comment at this time,” a State Department official told ABC News. “The Department of State has no higher priority than the safety and security of our U.S. citizens overseas. We will continue to press for fair and transparent treatment for all U.S. citizen detainees in Russia and around the world.”
The Pentagon declined to comment, instead directing all inquiries to the State Department.
“The American, acting in the interests of the Pentagon and a commercial organization affiliated with it, collected and transferred to a foreign party various information on biotechnological and biomedical topics, including information constituting a state secret, for the subsequent creation by the United States of a high-speed genetic screening system for the Russian population,” the FSB said Friday, according to Interfax.
The sentence has not entered into force and can be appealed, Interfax reported. The court did not report how Spector pleaded to the charges. It was a closed-door trial “due to the secrecy of the case materials,” Russian state media said.
Before espionage charges were brought against Spector in August 2023, he was arrested in a case involving bribes to the former assistant to Arkady Dvorkovich, the former deputy prime minister of the Russian Federation, according to Interfax.
Spector was sentenced 3 1/2 years in a maximum-security penal colony for acting as an intermediary in giving a bribe to Dvorkovich’s aide.
The sentence of espionage charges was handed down in conjunction with the previous sentence Spector had already received for the bribery charges, Russian state media said. Spector was handed a 13-year sentence for espionage charges, which added to his existing bribery sentence, converting the overall sentence into a new 15-year sentence, Russian state media reported.
The presiding judge had decided Spector should now serve an overall 15-year sentence in a maximum-security penal colony as punishment for both cases on Tuesday, reported TASS, a Russian state news agency.
Prior to his arrest, Spector was the chairman of the board of directors of the Medpolymerprom Group, a company specializing in cancer-curing drugs. Spector was born in Russia and then moved to the US.
On Friday, the U.S. State Department confirmed to ABC News another American serving a prison sentence in Russia was determined to be “wrongfully detained” by Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier this year.
Marc Fogel, an American teacher who was arrested in Russia on drug charges in 2021, is currently serving a 14-year sentence.
A State Department spokesperson said the U.S. has been trying to secure Fogel’s release and tried to include him in the large Aug. 1 prisoner exchange that freed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, among others.
Blinken determined Fogel as being wrongfully detained in October, the spokesperson said, adding that there was a variety of reasons why the department may not have made the designation public.
