[2][3] The remaining structure, comprising the deformed underlying bedrock, is located in present-day Free State province of South Africa.

The asteroid that hit Vredefort is estimated to have been one of the largest ever to strike Earth since the Hadean Eon some four billion years ago, originally thought to have been approximately 10–15 km (6.2–9.3 mi) in diameter.

The overlying Ventersdorp lavas and the Transvaal Supergroup which were laid down between 700 and 80 million years before the meteorite strike, were similarly distorted by the formation of the 300-kilometre-wide (190 mi) impact structure.

Since the Witwatersrand rocks consist of several layers of very hard, erosion-resistant sediments (e.g. quartzites and banded ironstones),[4][13] they form the prominent arc of hills that can be seen to the northwest of the impact structure's centre in the satellite picture above.

[4] The 40-kilometre-diameter (25 mi) centre of the Vredefort impact structure consists of a granite dome (where it is not covered by much younger rocks belonging to the Karoo Supergroup) which is an exposed part of the Kaapvaal craton, one of the oldest microcontinents which formed on Earth 3.9 billion years ago.

[4] This central peak uplift, or dome, is typical of a complex impact structure, where the liquefied rocks splashed up in the wake of the meteor as it penetrated the surface.

The Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site is currently subject to property development, and local owners have expressed concern regarding sewage dumping into the Vaal River and the impact structure.

[15] The granting of prospecting rights around the edges of the impact structure has led environmental interests to express fear of destructive mining.