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The volume commences with description of the meteorite flux with time, covering both small bodies (including strewn fields and the problem of ‘pairing’ of meteorites) and large bodies capable of producing craters and cryptoexplosion features. The discussion includes the different ways in which the flux has been determined (from observational astronomy, meteorite collection statistics and theoretical calculations). Following this comes the documentation of impacts in the geological record and their effects on the environment, focusing specifically on the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) boundary mass extinction event. Although the geophysical and geochemical evidence for a large impact at the end of the Cretaceous period is quite clear, the possible environmental consequences of an impact are still a matter of active debate, and the fossil record is by no means an unambiguous record of the mass extinction so frequently reported.
