Scientists Discover #Asteroid Impact from 430,000 Years Ago in #Antarctica
weather.com/en-IN/india/sc…
(📸: Dr. Wayne Trivelpiece/NOAA NMFS SWFSC Antarctic Marine Living Resources (AMLR) Program)
weather.com/en-IN/india/sc…
(📸: Dr. Wayne Trivelpiece/NOAA NMFS SWFSC Antarctic Marine Living Resources (AMLR) Program)
The extra-terrestrial particles recovered on the summit of Walnumfjellet (WN) within the Sor Rondane Mountains, Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica, indicate an unusual touchdown event.
As per the study, a jet of melted and vaporised meteoritic material resulting from the atmospheric entry of an asteroid at least 100 metres in size reached the surface at high velocity.
This type of explosion caused by a single-asteroid impact is described as intermediate, as it is larger than an airburst but smaller than an impact cratering event.
The chondritic bulk major, trace element chemistry and high nickel content of the debris demonstrate the extra-terrestrial nature of the recovered particles, said the study published in the journal Science Advances.
Their unique oxygen isotopic signatures indicate that they interacted with oxygen derived from the Antarctic ice sheet during their formation in the impact plume.
The findings indicate an impact much more hazardous than the Tunguska and Chelyabinsk events over Russia in 1908 and 2013, respectively.
The study highlights the importance of reassessing the threat of medium-sized asteroids, as it likely that similar touchdown events will produce similar particles. Such an event would be entirely destructive over a large area...
...corresponding to the area of interaction between the hot jet and the ground.
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