^1,2David Baratoux,^3,4Wolf Uwe Reimold
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12678]
¹Géosciences Environnement Toulouse, University of Toulouse, CNRS, IRD, Toulouse, France
²Institut Fondamental d’Afrique Noire, Univesity Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal
³Museum für Naturkunde – Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Research, Berlin, Germany
⁴Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Shatter cones are a fracture phenomenon that is exclusively associated with shock metamorphism and has also been produced in the laboratory in several shock experiments. The occurrence of shatter cones is the only accepted meso- to macroscopic recognition criterion for impact structures. Shatter cones exhibit a number of geometric characteristics (orientation, apical angles, striation angles, sizes) that can be best described as varied, from case to case. Possible links between geometric properties with impact or crater parameters have remained controversial and the lack of understanding of the mechanism of formation of shatter cones does not offer a physical framework to discuss or understand them. A database of shatter cone occurrences has been produced for this introduction paper to the special issue of Meteoritics and Planetary Science on shatter cones. Distribution of shatter cones with respect to crater size and lithology suggests that shatter cones do not occur in impact craters less than a few kilometers in diameter, with a few, currently questionable exceptions. All pertinent hypotheses of formation are presented and discussed. Several may be discarded in light of the most recent observations. The branching fracture mechanism and the interference models proposed, respectively, by Sagy et al. (2002) and Baratoux and Melosh (2003) require further evaluation. New observations, experiments, or theoretical considerations presented in this special issue promise an important step forward, based on a renewed effort to resolve the enigmatic origin of these important features.

^1,2Maximilian Hasch,^1,3Wolf Uwe Reimold,^1,2Ulli Raschke,¹Patrice Tristan Zaag
Meteoritics & Planetary Science (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1111/maps.12676]
¹Museum für Naturkunde—Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Berlin, Berlin, Germany
²Geosciences, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
³Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Shatter cones are the only distinct meso- to macroscopic recognition criterion for impact structures, yet not all is known about their formation. The Keurusselkä impact structure, Finland, is interesting in that it presents a multitude of well-exposed shatter cones in medium- to coarse-grained granitoids. The allegedly 27 km wide Keurusselkä impact structure was formed about 1150 Ma ago in rocks of the Central Finland Granitoid Complex. Special attention was paid in this work to possible relationships between shatter cones and local, as well as regionally occurring, fracture or joint systems. A possible shatter cone find outside the previously suggested edge of the structure could mean that the Keurusselkä impact structure is larger than previously thought. The spacing between joints/fractures from regional joint systems was influenced by the impact, but impact-induced fractures strongly follow the regional joint orientation trends. There is a distinct relationship between shatter cones and joints: shatter cones occur on and against joint surfaces of varied orientations and belonging to the regional orientation trends. Planar fractures (PF) and planar deformation features (PDF) were found in three shatter cone samples from the central-most part of the impact structure, whereas other country rock samples from the same level of exposure but further from the assumed center lack shock deformation features. PDF occurrence is enhanced within 5 mm of shatter cone surfaces, which is interpreted to suggest that shock wave reverberation at preimpact joints could be responsible for this local enhancement of shock deformation. Some shatter cone surfaces are coated with a quasi-opaque material which is also found in conspicuous veinlets that branch off from shatter cone surfaces and resemble pseudotachylitic breccia veins. The vein-filling is composed of two mineral phases, one of which could be identified as a montmorillonitic phyllosilicate. The second phase could not be identified yet. The original composition of the fill could not be determined. Further work is required on this material. Observed joints and fractures were discussed against findings from Barringer impact crater. They show that impact-induced joints in the basement rock do not follow impact-specific orientations (such as radial, conical, or concentric).