ABSTRACT
Meteor Crater in Arizona, which inspired the European impactists of the 1930s, received its name officially in 1946. It had previously been known by various other names such as Coon Mountain, Barringer Crater and Arizona Crater. In the USA, unlike in Germany, the impact promoters were physically stationed at the crater and kept the conflict simmering, whereas in Germany, until the paradigm finally shifted in 1960, impactists published their ideas and then dropped off again. Both Rohleder and Stutzer compared the German structures to Meteor Crater in Arizona, USA, although Stutzer considered both the Steinheim Basin and the Ries Basin to be impact craters, whereas to Rohleder only the Steinheim Basin was an impact crater. The impact origin of the Pretoria Salt Pan was confirmed by drilling in 1989, when shock-metamorphosed minerals and impact melts were found, only to proceed to the Steinheim Basin.
