Graphic representation of the Chicxulub impact structure (For Download):

Click the image above for a larger high-resolution JPG or to directly download a 300 dpi tif CLICK HERE
 

A schematic diagram of a buried complex crater with impact breccias overlying impact melt.
This is a generalized diagram of how the Chicxulub impact crater may be structured.  It is buried beneath several hundred to one thousand meters of sediment, so drilling is needed to sample rocks from the impact crater.  The Chicxulub Scientific Drilling Project is designed to drill through the overlying sediments, the impact breccias, the impact melt, and into the underlying impact-fractured rock.

For more information about terrestrial impact craters, the Chicxulub impact crater, and their environmental
effects, go to the University of Arizona's Space Imagery Center's website.