If you’re searching for hot temperatures, Canada probably isn’t the first place you’d think to look. Some 38 million years ago, however, what is today Canada was home to the hottest temperature ever produced on the surface of the Earth. New research has revealed that a massive meteorite slammed into the ground in the Labrador region, creating a hellish inferno that topped 4300 degrees Fahrenheit (2370 degrees Celsius).
The discovery, which was published in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters, focused on the formation of cubic zirconia at sight of the impact, which is now known as the Mistastin crater. The crater, which is home to Mistastin Lake, was found to contain the crystalline cubic zirconia, which was formed from the abundant mineral zircon. Because researchers already know that such a feat is only possible when temperatures top 2370 degrees Celsius, it’s a rather simple connection to make.
