Impact ejecta and carbonate sequence in the eastern sector of the Chicxulub crater

The Chicxulub 200 km diameter crater located in the Yucatan platform of the Gulf of Mexico formed 65 Myr ago and has since been covered by Tertiary post-impact carbonates. The sediment cover and absence of significant volcanic and tectonic activity in the carbonate platform have protected the crater from erosion and deformation, making Chicxulub the only large multi-ring crater in which ejecta is well preserved. Ejecta deposits have been studied by drilling/coring in the southern crater sector and at outcrops in Belize, Quintana Roo and Campeche; little information is available from other sectors. Here, we report on the drilling/coring of a section of 34 m of carbonate breccias at 250 m depth in the Valladolid area (120 km away from crater center), which are interpreted as Chicxulub proximal ejecta deposits. The Valladolid breccias correlate with the carbonate breccias cored in the Peto and Tekax boreholes to the south and at similar radial distance. This constitutes the first report of breccias in the eastern sector close to the crater rim. Thickness of the Valladolid breccias is less than that at the other sites, which may indicate erosion of the ejecta deposits before reestablishment of carbonate deposition. The region east of the crater rim appears different from regions to the south and west, characterized by high density and scattered distribution of sinkholes.