Kondyor Massif: A Remarkable Perfectly Round Natural Formation

MessageToEagle.com – Kondoyor Massif is a mysterious perfectly round formation that is considered a geological oddity. From space it looks like an impact crater or remnants of an ancient volcano, but it is not.

Located in in Khabarovsk Krai, Far Eastern Federal District, Far East Russia, this unusual landform with a diameter of just under 10 kilometers and a ridge about 600 meters tall is almost perfectly circular.
Unlike the Richat Structure, mysterious ancient eye of the Sahara Desert that no one knows why is it nearly circular; there is an explanation what caused the shape of Kondyor Massif.

Kondyor Massif is an intrusion. An intrusion forms when molten magma of igneous rock crystallizes below the surface of the earth, in this case forming a perfectly circular rocky ring over a billion years ago.

See also:

Where Do Diamonds Come From?

Large Parts Of Canada Are Missing Gravity

Mirny Diamond Mine: World’s Largest Open Pit Mine

More Cool Science Facts

This wonderful geological formation is the top edge of a column of rock extending deep into the crust, and the remnants of partially-eroded dome.

It is also a source of valuable minerals. In one year, over 4 tons of platinum were mined here. Gold is also found in the Kondyor Massif, and occasionally gold encrusted platinum crystals are found, a sort of natural geological jewelry.
Intrusions vary widely, from mountain-range-sized batholiths to thin veinlike fracture fillings of aplite or pegmatite. A well-known example of an intrusion is Devils Tower.
MessageToEagle.com