Earth Science Gallery
2002 EARTH SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES
Tape Title
Record ID
Date Produced
TRT:
Synopsis
ICE 2002: BOLIVIA ITURRALDE CRATER EXPEDITION G02-071 9/4/02 00:17:34 NASA scientists embark on an expedition to verify what may be the youngest complex meteorite impact crater on Earth. A circular feature, first observed in a 1984 Landsat image, that is located in the remote jungle of northern Bolivia shows strong circumstantial evidence for being a meteor impact crater. Named the Iturralde Structure, scientists believe a meteorite slammed into the Earth at this point sometime between 5,000 and 20,000 years ago, making it the most recent "large" impact site.
The Iturralde Crater Expedition 2002 (ICE 2002) departed September 3, 2002 for the remote Bolivian jungle to verify the structure's origin. The ICE 2002 expedition will visit the site and use a freshly developed NASA tool called the MAGPLANE to record the magnetic signature associated with the 8-kilometer circular structure. The expedition will also use sampling techniques to search the soil for critical physical and biological material evidence, and characterize the geomorphic setting of the site and
surroundings.
TAPE CONTENTS:
ITEM (1): Iturralde Structure, Bolivia South America Visualizations -This Landsat image shows the 8 km circular Iturralde Structure that resembles a meteor impact on the eastern Bolivian landscape. The Iturralde Stucture is located in perhaps the most remote and wildest part of the Bolivian lowlands. The crater is situated on the boarder of the Amazon forest and the vast open savannas of eastern Bolivia.
An early attempt to visit the site in 1987 was unsuccessful due to the remoteness of the locality. Yet, field data gathered during a 1998 expedition to the site supports the hypothesis that the circular feature is a meteorite impact crater. The rings visible on this satellite image correspond to slight ridges not more than 2 meters in elevation, but sufficiently higher to support upland forest vegetation, while the interior of the crater is either inundated savanna or flooded forest.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (2): Global Dispersion of Verified Impact Craters - Approximately 150 geological structures have been verified as meteor impact craters on the Earth. It is estimated that several hundred more remain to be identified. This visualization shows the distribution of verified impact structures across the globe. The small dots represent impact crater diameters of .02 - 20km in diameter. The medium size dots represent impact crater diameters of 20 - 100 km in diameter. The largest dots represent impact craters of 100 - 300 km in diameter.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (3): Magplane Flight Path Visualization -The MAGPLANE will take off from a dirt runway at Porta Araona, within the Bolivian jungle under the remote control of an operator. After an in-flight checkout, the remote system will be turned off and the onboard autopilot will fly the plane through the preprogrammed flight path at an altitude of about 200ft. The plane's instruments will record the magnetometer data and simultaneously transmit the data via satellite for researchers in Bolivia and the United States. After completing its flight plan, the MAGPLANE will return to the launch site, where the operator will reclaim remote control and land the plane. The MAGPLANE may take several days to complete the planned magnetic survey flight plan shown in this visualization.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (4): Magplane B-Roll -Scientists and engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and its Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, developed the MAGPLANE as a low cost, low risk tool to do low-altitude, wide-area magnetometer studies. The ICE 2002 campaign will be the MAGPLANE's first mission. The data collected by the MAGPLANE during the ICE 2002 campaign may help determine the origin of the Iturralde structure.
The MAGPLANE is a one-third scale, remote controlled model of a 1930 Piper Cub airplane. It is outfitted with a magnetometer, auto-pilot, GPS, onboard computer and a satellite communication system and will be used to remotely collect data of the magnetic signature in and around the Iturralde Structure.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (5): Asteriods and Meteor Impact Animations -A collection of various animations depicting meteors impacting
Earth.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (6): Remote and Wild: Science In The Bolivian Jungle - The Iturralde structure's remoteness has been one of the more frustrating factors facing scientists working to verify the origin of the structure. The Iturralde structure is located approximately 180 miles (288 km) from the nearest civilized town of Riberalta, Bolivia. Still images from the 1998 Iturralde Crater Expedition show the remote working conditions the ICE 2002 team will encounter during their expedition through the jungle. The ICE 2002 team will reach the crater impact site after traveling by jet airliner, small airplane, motor boat, dugout canoe, and finally by walking a 15 km long trail, cut by the 1998 expedition, through the forest.
Credit: NASA
ITEM (7): Interview Excerpt With Pete Wasilewski, ICE 2002 Expedition Leader, NASA
Credit: NASA
ITEM (8): Interview Excerpt With Patrick Coronado, Director, NASA Magplane Development Team
Credit: NASA
[Iturralde Structure Visualization]
[Magplane Flight Path Visualization]
[Global Dispersion of Verified Impact Craters Movie]
NOTE: The material advertised on this page is a "Video File" and is strictly recommended for the media and production companies. This is NOT a finished production but does contain some narration.
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Earth Science Gallery
2002 EARTH SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: | Synopsis |
| ICE 2002: BOLIVIA ITURRALDE CRATER EXPEDITION | G02-071 | 9/4/02 | 00:17:34 | NASA scientists embark on an expedition to verify what may be the youngest complex meteorite impact crater on Earth. A circular feature, first observed in a 1984 Landsat image, that is located in the remote jungle of northern Bolivia shows strong circumstantial evidence for being a meteor impact crater. Named the Iturralde Structure, scientists believe a meteorite slammed into the Earth at this point sometime between 5,000 and 20,000 years ago, making it the most recent "large" impact site. The Iturralde Crater Expedition 2002 (ICE 2002) departed September 3, 2002 for the remote Bolivian jungle to verify the structure's origin. The ICE 2002 expedition will visit the site and use a freshly developed NASA tool called the MAGPLANE to record the magnetic signature associated with the 8-kilometer circular structure. The expedition will also use sampling techniques to search the soil for critical physical and biological material evidence, and characterize the geomorphic setting of the site and surroundings. |
TAPE CONTENTS: |
||||
| ITEM (1): Iturralde Structure, Bolivia South America Visualizations -This Landsat image shows the 8 km circular Iturralde Structure that resembles a meteor impact on the eastern Bolivian landscape. The Iturralde Stucture is located in perhaps the most remote and wildest part of the Bolivian lowlands. The crater is situated on the boarder of the Amazon forest and the vast open savannas of eastern Bolivia. An early attempt to visit the site in 1987 was unsuccessful due to the remoteness of the locality. Yet, field data gathered during a 1998 expedition to the site supports the hypothesis that the circular feature is a meteorite impact crater. The rings visible on this satellite image correspond to slight ridges not more than 2 meters in elevation, but sufficiently higher to support upland forest vegetation, while the interior of the crater is either inundated savanna or flooded forest. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (2): Global Dispersion of Verified Impact Craters - Approximately 150 geological structures have been verified as meteor impact craters on the Earth. It is estimated that several hundred more remain to be identified. This visualization shows the distribution of verified impact structures across the globe. The small dots represent impact crater diameters of .02 - 20km in diameter. The medium size dots represent impact crater diameters of 20 - 100 km in diameter. The largest dots represent impact craters of 100 - 300 km in diameter. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (3): Magplane Flight Path Visualization -The MAGPLANE will take off from a dirt runway at Porta Araona, within the Bolivian jungle under the remote control of an operator. After an in-flight checkout, the remote system will be turned off and the onboard autopilot will fly the plane through the preprogrammed flight path at an altitude of about 200ft. The plane's instruments will record the magnetometer data and simultaneously transmit the data via satellite for researchers in Bolivia and the United States. After completing its flight plan, the MAGPLANE will return to the launch site, where the operator will reclaim remote control and land the plane. The MAGPLANE may take several days to complete the planned magnetic survey flight plan shown in this visualization. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (4): Magplane B-Roll -Scientists and engineers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and its Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, developed the MAGPLANE as a low cost, low risk tool to do low-altitude, wide-area magnetometer studies. The ICE 2002 campaign will be the MAGPLANE's first mission. The data collected by the MAGPLANE during the ICE 2002 campaign may help determine the origin of the Iturralde structure. The MAGPLANE is a one-third scale, remote controlled model of a 1930 Piper Cub airplane. It is outfitted with a magnetometer, auto-pilot, GPS, onboard computer and a satellite communication system and will be used to remotely collect data of the magnetic signature in and around the Iturralde Structure. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (5): Asteriods and Meteor Impact Animations -A collection of various animations depicting meteors impacting Earth. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (6): Remote and Wild: Science In The Bolivian Jungle - The Iturralde structure's remoteness has been one of the more frustrating factors facing scientists working to verify the origin of the structure. The Iturralde structure is located approximately 180 miles (288 km) from the nearest civilized town of Riberalta, Bolivia. Still images from the 1998 Iturralde Crater Expedition show the remote working conditions the ICE 2002 team will encounter during their expedition through the jungle. The ICE 2002 team will reach the crater impact site after traveling by jet airliner, small airplane, motor boat, dugout canoe, and finally by walking a 15 km long trail, cut by the 1998 expedition, through the forest. Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (7): Interview Excerpt With Pete Wasilewski, ICE 2002 Expedition Leader, NASA Credit: NASA | ||||
| ITEM (8): Interview Excerpt With Patrick Coronado, Director, NASA Magplane Development Team Credit: NASA | ||||
[Iturralde Structure Visualization] [Magplane Flight Path Visualization] [Global Dispersion of Verified Impact Craters Movie]
NOTE: The material advertised on this page is a "Video File" and is strictly recommended for the media and production companies. This is NOT a finished production but does contain some narration.
[HOME] [Return to the Earth Science Catalog] [How to order videotapes]