The Mysterious Meteorite of Chalk Mountain, Texas

The Mysterious Meteorite of Chalk Mountain, Texas

The Mysterious Meteorite of Chalk Mountain, Texas
by, Manfred Cuntz, Skeptical Inquirer, Volume 36.1
January/February 2012
http://www.csicop.org/si/show/the_mysterious_meteorite_of_chalk_mountain_texas/

Yours,
Paul H.

Younger Dryas Impact Controversy Continues

Younger Dryas Impact Controversy Continues

The controversy over the Younger Dryas Impact
Hypothesis continues.

Mysterious Black Mats on Earth Not From Outer
Space by Charles Choi, LiveScience, April 23, 2012
http://www.livescience.com/19844-cosmic-collision-black-mats-earth.html

Perkins, S., 2012, No Love for Comet Wipeout.
ScienceNow, April 23, 2012
http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2012/04/no-love-for-comet-wipeout.html

University of Miami press release at:
Anonymous, 2012, Miami geologist, colleagues:
New evidence argues against prehistoric
extraterrestrial impact. University of Miami
http://www.miami.muohio.edu/news/article/view/16981.html

The paper is:
Pigati, J. S., C. Latorre, J. A. Rech, J. L.
Betancourte, K. E. Martínezb, and J. R. Budahn, 2012,
Accumulation of impact markers in desert wetlands
and implications for the Younger Dryas impact
hypothesis. Proceeedings of the National Academy
of Science. Published online before print April 23,
2012, doi: 10.1073/pnas.1200296109 PNAS April 23, 2012
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2012/04/16/1200296109

Best wishes,
Paul H.

Huge Spirals Found on Mars

Huge Spirals Found on Mars

Huge Spirals Found on Mars—Evidence of New Lava
Type? Coils hint that volcanoes, not ice, shaped odd red
planet region. National Geographic, April 26, 2012
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/04/120426-mars-new-lava-coils-volcanoes-ice-life-space-science/

New form of Mars lava flow dicovered, ScienceDaily
April 26, 2012, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120426143804.htm
and http://esciencenews.com/articles/2012/04/26/new.form.mars.lava.flow.dicovered

The press release is:
Graduate Student Discovers New Form of Lava Flow
on Mars, Arizona State University College
April 25, 2012, http://www.newswise.com/articles/graduate-student-discovers-new-form-of-lava-flow-on-mars

The paper is:
Ryan, A. J., and P. R. Christensen, 2012, Coils and
Polygonal Crust in the Athabasca Valles Region, Mars,
as Evidence for a Volcanic History. Science, vol. 336,
no. 6080, pp. 449-452. http://www.sciencemag.org/content/336/6080/449

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Mysterious 'Monster' Fossil (?) Discovered by Amateur Paleontologist

Mysterious 'Monster' Fossil (?) Discovered by Amateur Paleontologist

Mysterious 'Monster' Discovered by Amateur
Paleontologist, ScienceDaily, April 24, 2012
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120424121738.htm

Animal, vegetable, mineral - or monster?
Giant nine-foot-high fossil dubbed 'Godzillus'
baffles experts. Mail Online, April 25, 2012,
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2134973/Animal-vegetable--monster-9ft-high-fossil-dubbed-Godzillus-baffles-experts.html

The original press release is:
Mysterious 'Monster' Discovered By Amateur
Paleontologist, University of Cincinnati, Greg Hand
http://www.uc.edu/news/nr.aspx?id=15649

The abstract is:
Fine, R., C. E. Brett, B. Dattilo, and D. L.
Meyer, 2012, An enigmatic Mat-like Fossil (?)
in the Kope Formation (Upper Ordovician),
Kenton county, Kentucky. Geological Society
of America Abstracts with Programs,
vol. 44, no. 5, p. 67.
http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2012NC/finalprogram/abstract_202937.htm
http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2012NC/finalprogram/session_31042.htm

In part, the abstract states:
"A new, enigmatic, large fossil(?) object from
a thin silty mudstone bed (up to 3 cm thick)
underlain by siltstone was excavated from the
lower Kope Formation (Economy Member,
basal Pioneer Valley submember) near
Covington, KY."

Yours,
Paul H.

Meteorite Hunters Find Meteorites From California Fireball

Meteorite Hunters Find Meteorites From California Fireball

Meteorite Hunters Find Fragments from the Recent 'Daytime
Fireball’ in California by Nancy Atkinson, April 26, 2012
http://www.universetoday.com/94828/meteorite-hunters-find-fragments-from-the-recent-daytime-fireball-in-california/

Fragments of the daylight meteor found in California by
Franck Marchis. Cosmic Diary Network, April 25, 2012
http://cosmicdiary.org/fmarchis/2012/04/25/daylight_meteor_incalifornia/
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-April/084583.html

Sutter's Mill meteorite hunt, Micheal Framer, April 26, 2012
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-April/084609.html

Pictures of the Lotus Meteorite by Brien Cooke
http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/meteorite-list/2012-April/084569.html
http://briencook.com/lotus/

Best wishes,
Paul H.

Wethersfield — Connecticut's Meteorite Magnet

Wethersfield — Connecticut's Meteorite Magnet

Wethersfield — Connecticut's Meteorite Magnet
by Bill Leukhardt, The Hartford Courant, April 17, 2012
http://articles.courant.com/2012-04-17/community/hc-wethersfield-meteorite-0414-20120413_1_wethersfield-middletown-ave-watches

Yours,
Paul H.

Martian meteorite tested at Glasgow University

Martian meteorite tested at Glasgow University

Martian meteorite tested at Glasgow University
BBC News, April 23, 2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-17812963

Martian meteorite touches down at the
University of Glasgow, deadline news
http://www.deadlinenews.co.uk/2012/04/23/martian-meteorite-touches-down-at-the-university-of-glasgow/

An older article:
Rare Martian meteorite given to science
By Anna-Marie Lever and Jonathan Amos, Feb. 8, 2012
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16943200

Yours,
Paul H.

Dinosaur eggs said found in Russia's Chechnya

Dinosaur eggs said found in Russia's Chechnya

John Siebel wrote,
"The general opinion on the Paleolist is that they're concretions."

These alleged "dinosaur eggs" are clearly cannonball concretions.
Proof of this interpretation is seen in one picture that shows three
of these pseudoeggs merged together. For comparison, a collection
of pictures of cannonball concretions can be seen in (1.) "Tout ce
que la nature ne peut pas faire, IV : sphères de pierre" at:
http://irna.lautre.net/Tout-ce-que-la-nature-ne-peut-pas,45.html

(2.) " Boules de pierre en Slovaquie, République Tchèque et Pologne" at:
http://irna.lautre.net/Boules-de-pierre-en-Slovaquie.html

and (3.) "The Moeraki Boulders" at:
http://homepages.ezysurf.co.nz/~middleimage/MoerakiBoulders.html

Some papers, which discuss in detail examples of such
natural stone balls, which are spheroidal (cannonball)
concretions are:

Boles, J. R., Landis, C. A., and Dale, P., 1985, The Moeraki
boulders; anatomy of some septarian concretions. Journal of
Sedimentary Petrology. vol. 55, no. 3, pp. 398-406.

McBride, E. F., Picard, M. D., Milliken, K. M., 2003, Calcite-
cemented concretions in Cretaceous sandstone, Wyoming and
Utah, U.S.A. Journal of Sedimentary Research. vol. 73, no. 3.
pp. 462-483.

Horne, R. R.., and Taylor, B. J., 1969, Calcareous concretions
in the lower Cretaceous sediments of south-eastern Alexander
Island. British Antarctic Survey Bulletin. vol. 21, pp. 19-32.

Krajewski, K. P., and Luks, B., 2003, Origin of 'cannon-ball'
concretions in the Carolinefjellet Formation (Lower Cretaceous),
Spitsbergen. Polish Polar Research. vol. 24, no. 3-4, pp. 217-242.

Best wishes,

Paul H.

Free PDF Files of Papers About Joggins Fossil Cliffs and Other Locations

Free PDF Files of Papers About Joggins Fossil Cliffs and Other Locations

Dear Friends,
Free PDF files of publications about the Joggins Fossil
can be downloaded from one of Dr. Falcon-Lang's web
pages at
http://sites.google.com/site/howardfalconlang/Home/publications

This web page also contains PDF files of papers about
fossil wood and forests of other parts of the world.

Some of the PDF file, which can be found at the above
web page included:
Falcon-Lang, H. J., 2003, Response of Late Carboniferous
tropical vegetation to transgressive-regressive rhythms,
Joggins, Nova Scotia. Journal of the Geological Society,
London. vol. 160, no. 4, pp. 643-648. (no. 21 on list)

Falcon-Lang, H. J., 2003, Late Carboniferous dryland tropical
vegetation in an alluvial plain setting, Joggins, Nova Scotia,
Canada. PALAIOS. vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 197-211. (no. 20 on list)

Falcon-Lang, H. J., and J. H. Calder, 2004, UNESCO World
Heritage and the Joggins cliffs of Nova Scotia. Geology
Today. vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 140-144. (no. 27 on list)

Falcon-Lang, H. J., 2004. Coal, ice and ancient rainforests.
Planet Earth, Autumn, pp. 20-21. (no. 28 on list)

Falcon-Lang, H. J., 2007. A Cordaixylon axis from well-
drained alluvial plain facies in the Lower Pennsylvanian
Joggins Formation of Nova Scotia. Atlantic Geology.
vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 87-90. (no. 71 on list)

Falcon-Lang, H. J., 2009, The earliest history of coal mining
and grindstone quarrying at Joggins, Nova Scotia and its
implications for the meaning of the place-name “Joggins”.
Atlantic Geology 45, pp. 1-21 (no. 85 on list)

Another web page is:
The Joggins Fossil Cliffs
http://jogginsfossilcliffs.net/

Best wishes,
Paul H.

Earth Has Just One Moon, Right? Think Again

Earth Has Just One Moon, Right? Think Again

Earth Has Just One Moon, Right? Think Again
by Joe Palca, Morning Edition, NPR, April 3, 2102'
http://www.npr.org/2012/04/03/149712082/earth-has-just-one-moon-right-think-again

The paper is:

Granvik, M., J. Vaubaillon, and R. Jedicke, 2012,
The population of natural Earth satellites. Icarus.
vol. 218, no. 1, pp. 262–277.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0019103511004684
PDF file of preprint at http://arxiv.org/abs/1112.3781

Other moons of Earth, Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Other_moons_of_Earth

Yours,

Paul H.