New Evidence Supports Cosmic Impact Theory

Quote from: Quasar on June 30, 2012, 04:38:11 pm

New Evidence Supports Cosmic Impact Theory
by Archaeorama News on Jun 13, 2012 • 18:57 6 Comments

melt-glass
Melt glass known as trinitite formed at the ground surface from the melting of sediments and rocks by the very high temperatures of the Trinity nuclear airburst in New Mexico in 1945. This material is very similar to the glassy melt materials now reported from the cosmic impact YDB layer. Credit: UCSB

Melt-glass material found in sedimentary rocks at sites around the world has provided new evidence for an extraterrestrial impact about 13,000 years ago, says a new study published in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

According to an international team of researchers that includes James Kennett, professor of earth science at UC Santa Barbara, the material, found in Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Syria, was formed at temperatures of 1,700 to 2,200 degrees Celsius (3,100 to 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit), and is the result of a cosmic body impacting Earth.

These new data strongly support the controversial Younger Dryas Boundary (YDB) hypothesis, which proposes that a cosmic impact occurred 12,900 years ago at the onset of an unusual cold climatic period called the Younger Dryas.

The episode occurred at or close to the time of major extinction of the North American megafauna, including mammoths and giant ground sloths; and the disappearance of the prehistoric and widely distributed Clovis culture.

Morphological and geochemical evidence of the melt-glass confirms that the material is not cosmic, volcanic, or of human-made origin.

“The very high temperature melt-glass appears identical to that produced in known cosmic impact events such as Meteor Crater in Arizona, and the Australasian tektite field,” said Kennett.

“The melt material also matches melt-glass produced by the Trinity nuclear airburst of 1945 in Socorro, New Mexico. The extreme temperatures required are equal to those of an atomic bomb blast, high enough to make sand melt and boil,” he said.

It was written about in a 1950 book called "Worlds in Collision" that said the world was hit many times by cosmic forces.
Some times a near miss can cause major changes as well.
It was a great read that should be read by all.
walt