UK Impact Crater Debate Heats Up

BBC ^ | 3-30-2007 | Jonathan Fildes

[blam]

There's more on the links at the site.

[verum ago]

interesting. there's evidence both ways, but the salt hypothesis seems more likely. I'm no expert, but I'm considering getting a geology degree (and do have some real knowledge) and for what it's worth, a basin related to salt flow is exactly what popped into mind after reading 7 words into the article, to North Sea.

[Calvin Locke]

Would not some cores of the crater add more information? The presence of minerals known to be created in cosmic impacts would seem to confirm the impact theory, but the lack of minerals couldn't discount it, either, current erosion and all that.

[verum ago]

yes- cores of the crater would make or break the impact hypothesis very easily- since the site is under water and has in fact had further sediments deposited onto it, the original mineralogy of the sea-bottom crater should be intact. Even if it was destroyed, then there should still be distinctive 'shocked' mineral crystals in the bedrock underlaying the crater.(this is one of the nicer features of large impacts- they leave behind evidence in the nearby bedrock that wasn't macroscopically deformed, meaning that even if the entire crater structure (surface and subsurface) was erased there could still be evidence of the impact. of course, without the crater structures no one would look for these signs)
the problems here are that the geometry of the basin suggest an impact (as does the 'nipple' structure), but such extensive and symmetric concentric rings haven't been observed except on icy bodies elsewhere in the solar system- where the topmost layer is the most rigid and the ones beneath are more plastic or even fluid- it should be the opposite on earth. Of course no salt recession basin has ever been seen with so perfect geometry, but if it's true that the area is littered with similar features and that they correspond with thinning in the salt layer the salt theory would be a lot stronger. The fact is that the multitude of rings actually is a bit problematic for both hypotheses- it could theoretically be possible for both, but has never been observed under the circumstances for either.

[Political Junkie Too]

"I can't understand why John keeps banging away at an alternative model," said team member Dr Simon Stewart, a geologist with BP.

Maybe they'll demand that his credentials be revoked and that his funding be rescinded?

-PJ

[brityank]

And what about a strike into the ice-pack during the last major freeze when the sea would have been frozen to the bottom?

[Erik Latranyi]

It can only be seen on seismic data, collected by petroleum companies hunting for new oil and gas fields.

It was found by those evil oil companies. Nothing good can come from this.

[verum ago]

well then I guess the evidence would be limited to a Tommy Lee Jones movie produced by Al Gore.

[blam]

"And what about a strike into the ice-pack during the last major freeze when the sea would have been frozen to the bottom?"

"However, the group that discovered the structure in 2002 stands by its original theory of a cataclysmic asteroid or comet impact about 60-65 million years ago. "

I don't know what the climate was like in that period. I think the dino's were just clobbered by the Chixlub impact down in Mexico.

[brityank]

"However, the group that discovered the structure in 2002 stands by its original theory of a cataclysmic asteroid or comet impact about 60-65 million years ago. "

Their note does place it into one of the major ice sheet coverings, I think.

[blam]

I've read that cosmic impacts on land causes it to get colder while an impact in water causes things to warm up. I think impacting into ice would be similar to results of a water impact, warming.

[blam]

BTW, some pretty respectable scientists think a comet or comet fragment impacts caused the last Ice Age to end and we're still enjoying the benefits from that.

[SunkenCiv]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/1607979/replies?c=36

[SunkenCiv]

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[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic was posted on March 30, 2007.

Thanks blam.

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[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic was posted on March 30, 2007.

Thanks blam.

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[SunkenCiv]

Maine Crater Related to Dino-Killer Asteroid?
Discovery News | April 3, 2003 | Larry O’Hanlon
Posted on April 6, 2003 12:39:18 AM EST by SteveH
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/886240/posts

[gleeaikin]

This chart is an indication of temperature changes over the last one million years. The article is about an event 60-65 million years ago. This chart has nothing to do with that time period. Also, any evidence of tsunami wash would have long ago been destroyed by many, many ice sheets.

[gleeaikin]

Those evil oil companies supplied the data that enabled the Alvarez team to discover the Yucatan meteor crater of 65 million years ago (mya). Apparently oil deposits and the extreme pressure caused by these strikes can go hand in hand. There is an apparent crater off the Brazilian coast which seems to be an oil source. Given the oil in the North Sea, this goes along with that idea. Also, multiple craters around the same time period are not unheard of. The Chesapeake (Bay) Meteor strike of 34 mya, also had companions of roughly the same age, including a 10 mile wide crater off Toms River, NJ, and a 60 mile wide crater (Popogai (sp?) in Siberia. Another comment here mentions a possible crater off Maine of the right age (65 mya).

The Chesapeake Meteor was verified by deep coring which showed breccia and shocked quartz. They also hope to find oil around there.

[Fred Nerks]

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