In the late 1970s, Walter and Luis Alvarez discovered an inexplicably high level of iridium at the KT border in Gubbio, Italy. The level of iridium in this place was 30 times higher than in other layers of the rock, below and above the border. The team of Alvarez claimed that about 65 million years ago, a celestial body, probably a meteorite, was responsible for the Earth, which was responsible for the high level of iridium.
One of the proposed theories was that the boundary could be formed by accumulating sediment 30 times slower than usual. However, after the Alvarez group discovered further discoveries in other parts of the world at the QD boundary, where everyone shows iridium concentrations 30 times higher than normal, exclude the theory of slow sedimentation.
Massive celestial objects moving at high speed will have high kinetic energy, and if they hit the ground, which they do quickly, the energy conversion rate will be intense. The blow would have been excavated rock, on the condition of intense heat that would melt the stone and spray it like lava into the atmosphere. A tsunami also occurred at the point of impact or point of impact, if more than one piece of meteorite was selected at that time, which was suggested.
Evidence supporting the impact theory includes the following:
1. Excess iridium in layer 65 of my-old soil has been confirmed at many points throughout the world.
2. The same layer of soil contains grains of quartz, which were deformed by high percussion presses, as happened with a gigantic explosion. (Deformation is a microscopic structure called “twinning” in crystals).
3. Periodically the smallest diamonds are formed at extremely high pressures.
4. Tiny glass spheres were formed when cooled drops of molten rock were released into the atmosphere.
5. The same layer of soil contains enough soot to match the burning of all the forests of the world. This suggests that during the impact massive fires were affected.
6. The same soil layer, especially around the Gulf of Mexico, contains massive deposits of fallen boulders, which will be formed as a result of a large tsunami or “tidal wave”. The geographical distribution of tsunami sediments suggests that this effect is observed in the Caribbean.
7. After a decade of searching, scientists in 1990 identified a crater associated with this material. It is no longer visible on the surface of the Earth, but buried under precipitation. He rides the coast of Yucatan, in the Mexican province of Chicxulub. This was shown by comparing the strength of the gravitational field over this area and drilling; It was timed to 65 million years. He was identified as a shock crater.
8. Astronomers have scheduled numerous asteroids that cross the Earth’s orbit. From studies of orbit statistics, it is estimated that asteroids measuring 10 km can hit the earth approximately every 100 My or so - which corresponds to the idea that we actually got hit 65 My time ago with an object of this size. (Smaller hits are much more common).
9. At the borders of CT, there is a huge amount of fossil plankton all over the world below the boundary (over 65 Ma), but there are very few fossils on the layer, which provides additional evidence of mass extinction at that time.
A different reason for the boundary of CT and mass extinction is proposed, and not the theory of impact. This is a flood of basalts. Detailed radiometric testing has shown that large flows of magma occur on both sides of the CT boundary. This was the result of India drifting over a hot spot during continental drift. A huge amount of pyroclastic material and gases emitted by flood basalts would cause the significant extinction of many species of life. Sulfur dioxide would lead to acid rain, which would reduce the Ph of ocean surface waters. Carbon dioxide emitted during this event can cause global warming. The dust released by the activity will increase the albedo of the Earth and lead to cooling. Sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide and dust affect the atmosphere and therefore quickly spread around the Earth, which is a prerequisite for mass extinction. Foraminifera with their carbonate calcium carbonates would not have survived in the acidic conditions of the sea. Dust preceded phytoplankton photosynthesis, which would become extinct and would no longer be an element of the food chain for higher forms of life, which is also dying out.
