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Prehistory -

Around 15 million years ago, an asteroid traveling at more than 43,500 mph (70,000 km/h) slammed into an area known today as western Bavaria, in southern Germany.

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Incredible power -

The speed with which the asteroid hit the ground left an impact crater of impressive dimensions, more than 15 miles (24 km) in diameter and anywhere between 330 to 490 feet (100 to 150 m) deep. The heavenly body itself is thought to have been over half a mile (1 km) in width. Astonishingly, scientists suggest the resulting explosion had the power of 1.8 million Hiroshima bombs!

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Nördlinger Ries and Steinheimer crater -

In the modern era the impact crater became known as the Nördlinger Ries, named after the town of  Nördlingen that had been developed within its circumference. Another impact crater, the much smaller Steinheimer crater, lies southwest of its more famous neighbor.

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Early history -

Nördlingen dates back to at least 898. In 1215, the town was granted city rights by Emperor Frederick II and became an imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire.

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First Battle of Nördlingen -

The town rose to prominence in the 17th century as the location of two battles during the Thirty Years' War, one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. The first Battle of Nördlingen took place in 1634, when a combined Imperial-Spanish force inflicted a crushing defeat on the Swedish-German army.

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Second Battle of Nördlingen -

The second Battle of Nördlingen was fought in 1645. In that engagement, France and its Protestant German allies defeated the forces of the Holy Roman Empire and its Bavarian ally.

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Population decline -

The city was spared destruction by the victors, but its population was decimated as a result of hunger and disease during a long siege.

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Medieval cityscape -

Nördlingen's medieval cityscape, however, remained well preserved. Today, it is one of very few towns in Germany that still have completely intact city walls.

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Celestial origins -

Its authentic, picture-book veneer has made Nördlingen one of the most visited destinations in Bavaria. But for hundreds of years, residents and historians alike had assumed that the town sat on volcanic foundations. The notion that Nördlingen had a history from outer space was pure science fiction. That is until the mid-20th century when two geologists made an incredible discovery.

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Key evidence -

In 1960, geologist Eugene Shoemaker (pictured), together with his colleague Edward C. T. Chao, showed that the giant depression in which Nördlingen sat was made by a asteroid colliding with Earth. The key evidence was the presence of suevite, melted rock formed during an impact event.

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Unusual building material -

Shoemaker's findings were lent further credence when he realized that Nördlingen's Saint George's Church and its tower, known as the Daniel, was built of locally derived suevite.

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Diamond discovery -

Further investigation by the two geologists led to an even greater revelation: the seismic impact had created millions of tiny diamonds, in fact an estimated 72,000 tonnes (72,000,000 kg) of them when the asteroid impacted a local graphite deposit.

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Precious particles -

Initially formed as bubbles of carbon within the rock and then transformed into microscopic diamonds under the pressure and heat of the explosion, these precious particles are embedded within the material used to construct most of Nördlingen, including the town's ancient city walls.

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A gem of an attraction -

Most of Nördlingen's old town center is comprised of buildings made, in part, from diamonds. Saint George's Church alone is thought to contain 5,000 carats' worth of the gems in total.

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Lunar likeness -

Nördlinger Ries is absolutely unique. It is the only example on Earth of what scientist call a rampart crater. Rampart craters have almost exclusively been found on Mars, though some also texture the Moon's surface. And it's the similarity between the rock found at Nördlinger and that on the Moon that led NASA to dispatch astronauts from the Apollo 14 and Apollo 16 space missions to the region before their Moon expeditions to learn about the kind of rocks they might come across in the cosmos.

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Similar geology -

Astronaut Alan Shepard, commander of Apollo 14, used the knowledge gained at Nördlinger Ries to properly explore the lunar surface in 1971 as a geologist would.

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Moon rock display -

As a show of appreciation for Nördlingen having hosted the astronauts, NASA loaned a piece of moon rock to the town's Rieskrater Museum. The celestial fragment is showcased as part of a wider exhibition focusing on meteors and their collisions with Earth.

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Nördlingen town hall -

The Rieskrater Museum is one of several cultural institutions certainly worth browsing during a visit to Nördlingen. Another must-see is the town hall, which dates back to the 13th century. Its iconic staircase is also peppered with clusters of tiny diamonds. While they certainly add sparkle to any visit, it should be pointed out that Nördlingen's diamonds aren't going to make anybody rich quick: they don't have any economic value whatsoever.

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Priceless view -

A bird's eye perspective of the town can be enjoyed from the top of the aforementioned Daniel, Saint George's lofty church steeple. This is the view looking south.

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Winter wonderland -

Another view from the Daniel, this time showing the old town under snow. Bavaria in wintertime is simply bewitching!

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Saint George's Church -

While gothic architectural elements distinguish the outside, inside Saint George's the eye is met with a feast of Baroque and neo-Renaissance decoration.

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Saint Salvator Church -

Be sure to investigate Nördlingen's other ecclesiastical showstopper, Saint Salvator Church. Consecrated in 1422, highlights include the high altar and a wonderfully decorative organ.

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Deininger Tor -

Nördlingen's 14th-century Deininger Tor serves as the medieval gateway to the Romantic Road, the route to Regensburg and Vienna.

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Bavarian Railway Museum -

Nördlingen was once connected to the network of the Royal Bavarian State Railways. The town's engaging Bavarian Railway Museum is based in the old locomotive sheds at Nördlingen station and features an open-air display of historic rolling stock.

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Old town charm -

In the Middle Ages, Nördlingen was an important center of trade and commerce. Testimony to this industrious period can be seen in the collection of beautifully preserved buildings that used to house tradesmen's goods or a market for their wares.

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Film set looks -

Nördlingen's fairy tale looks have not escaped Hollywood. Aerial scenes at the end of 'Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory' from 1971 were filmed here.

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Famous son -

Nördlingen's most famous son of the modern era is German soccer superstar Gerd Müller, who was born here in 1945. After his death in 2021, the town unveiled a bronze statue of Müller, one of the sport's most prolific goal scorers.

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Mission to Mars -

Nördlinger Ries is today a UNESCO global geopark, and scientists continue to analyze samples taken from soil in order to obtain data for a NASA mission to Mars.

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Getting ready to explore the red planet -

Rock samples from Bavaria should help NASA in its search for possible life on Mars. To that end, researchers are drawing on documents held at the drill core archive of the State Office for comparative studies. 

Sources: (Daily Mail) (NASA) (UNESCO)

See also: Mesmerizing photos of Mars that will make you want to move there

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