Mysterious patches of glassy rock across Atacama Desert- Pica Glass and Atacamaites, Chile

Mysterious patches of glassy rock across Atacama Desert- Pica Glass and Atacamaites, Chile

In Mysterious patches of glassy rock across Atacama Desert,
https://www.mail-archive.com/meteorite-list@meteoritecentral.com/msg131785.html

Robert Verish asked:
>This story caused a big splash on the Internet back in late-2021, but I'm still looking for a published paper.
>Has anyone heard anything more about this speculated comet impact?

Here is a follow-up article (dated Nov. 8, 2021) regarding a reported finding of impact-melt glass from a suspect "comet impact in the Atacama Desert".
https://www.sci.news/space/atacama-desert-comet-10247.html

Here is the original CNN article:

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/03/world/atacama-desert-glass-comet-scn/index.html

Below are some papers:

Gattacceca, J., Devouard, B., Barrat, J.A., Rochette, P., Balestrieri, M.L., Bigazzi, G., Ménard, G., Moustard, F., Dos Santos, E.,
Scorzelli, R. and Valenzuela, M., 2021. A 650 km2 Miocene strewnfield of splash-form impact glasses in the Atacama Desert,
Chile. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 569, p.117049

Koeberl, C., Crósta, A.P. and Schulz, T., 2022, March. Geochemistry, Highly Siderophile Elements, and Re-Os Isotope Signatures of
Impact Glasses from the Atacama Desert, Chile. In 53rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (Vol. 2678, p. 2616).
https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2022/pdf/2616.pdf

Roperch, P., Gattacceca, J., Valenzuela, M., Devouard, B., Lorand, J.P., Arriagada, C., Rochette, P., Latorre, C. and Beck, P., 2017.
Surface vitrification caused by natural fires in Late Pleistocene wetlands of the Atacama Desert. Earth and Planetary Science
Letters, 469, pp.15-26.
https://hal.science/hal-02889687/file/Pica_Glass_Paleomag_data.pdf


Schultz, P.H., Harris, R.S., Perroud, S., Blanco, N. and Tomlinson, A.J., 2022. Widespread glasses generated by cometary fireballs
during the late Pleistocene in the Atacama Desert, Chile. Geology, 50(2), pp.205-209. open access
https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geology/article/50/2/205/609354/Widespread-glasses-generated-by-cometary-fireballs


Yours,

Paul H.