A shatter cone is that rare fragment of stone whose origin is from the bottom of a meteorite impact crater. It is a distinctively conical fragment and usually will remain some meters beneath the floor of an impact crater, within the uppermost units of the impact-shocked target rock. It has regular thin grooves (striae) that radiate from the top (apex) of the cone.

Shatter cones are only discovered at meteorite impact sites. They can range in length from 2.5 cm to several meters. A very large example of more than 10 m in length is known from the Slates Islands impact structure, Canada. The azimuths of the cones's axes typically radiate outwards from the point of impact, with the cones pointing towards the center of the impact crater.

• http://web.cocc.edu/breynolds/classes/UO_Geol_353/shatter%20cones.pdf
• http://www.lpi.usra.edu/publications/books/CB-954/CB-954.pdf
• http://www.sciencemall-usa.com/rarmetshatea.html

Strahlenkegel (Gestein) | Craters