NFS Funds Research Into Terminal Pleistocene Impact Hypothesis

NSF Funds Research Into Terminal Pleistocene Impact Hypothesis

Paul bristolia at yahoo.com
Thu Aug 16 15:27:26 EDT 2007

Dear Listmembers,

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded research
into terminal Pleistocene impact hypothesis.

Discovery Comet May Have Exploded Over North
America 13,000 Years Ago: Caused wooly mammoth
extinction, global cooling and end of early human
Clovis culture (Press Release)

http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=109768&org=NSF&from=news

Award Abstract #0713769 SGER: Investigations of a Likely
Extraterrestrial Impact at 12.9 ka: Possible Cause of Younger
Dryas Cooling, North American Mammal Mass Extinction and
Demise of Clovis People

http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward.do?AwardNumber=0713769

“This award, under the auspices of the Small Grants for
Exploratory Research (SGER) program, funds research to
test a new hypothesis that Younger Dryas climatic cooling
was triggered by a comet impact on or near the Laurentide
Ice Sheet. This impact may have caused destabilization,
melting, and massive flooding to the northern Atlantic
and Arctic oceans that in turn affected ocean circulation
and climate.

The research is founded on growing physical evidence for
an impact at 12,900 years ago based on analyses from a
discrete carbon-rich black colored sedimentary layer that
is widely distributed over North America. This sedimentary
layer contains iridium, cosmic spherules, carbon spherules,
and fullerenes enriched in extraterrestrial noble gas
concentrations.

Iridium, fullerenes, cosmic spherules and glass-like carbon
formed under high temperatures are being reported from
the sediment rims of depressed geomorphic features called
Carolina Bays. This evidence may help evaluate whether the
Bays originated in an impact.

The researchers will explore, chemically analyze, and date
the black layer at several geographic locations. In addition
to field exploration, the researchers will examine existing
marine cores from the Hudson Bay region since the region
is the primary location for the suspected impact event.

The research could have broad impact on the wider science
community and catalyze new thinking in issues surrounding
climate, mass extinctions, landscape development, and
human and cultural evolution in the Americas by offering
a new perspective on old and knotty scientific problems.”

I have yet to see any peer-reviewed paper published in
Proceedings of the National Academy of Science as
promised by West and Firestone.

Yours,

Paul H.