Mass Extinction Events

[Wandering Sagebrush]

An interesting article on mass extinction events of the past and present.

 

[ski3pin]

Although not related to any of these extinction events, there are remnants of a large impact crater near Alamo, Nevada that is on our list for a future trip, to see if we can find the evidence.

Our old blue ball has seen a lot and there's much more to come in the future. I'm betting human extinction is a sure thing.

Thanks for tonight's reading, Mr. Sage!

 

[AWG_Pics]

An interesting article on mass extinction events of the past and present.

Watch out Steve. You are perilously close to provoking a pedantic lecture from myself and a few other old retired Geologists! (Foy... I am looking at you.)

Although not related to any of these extinction events, there are remnants of a large impact crater near Alamo, Nevada that is on our list for a future trip, to see if we can find the evidence.

Our old blue ball has seen a lot and there's much more to come in the future. I'm betting human extinction is a sure thing.

Thanks for tonight's reading, Mr. Sage!

Ski,
Extinction is the rule, with very few exceptions. Hag fish, lamprey, and sturgeon are some of the very long lived megafauna. Hundreds of millions of years for some of them. But the vast majority of species, likely including us, are fated for extinction. Makes you wonder if humans are going to be the earth's one and only experiment with 'intelligence' or if there is a Thinker version 2.0 out there in the future somewhere. (I will refrain from attempts to be wry or witty about how well humans have done.)

 

[Foy]

Watch out Steve. You are perilously close to provoking a pedantic lecture from myself and a few other old retired Geologists! (Foy... I am looking at you.)


Ski,
Extinction is the rule, with very few exceptions. Hag fish, lamprey, and sturgeon are some of the very long lived megafauna. Hundreds of millions of years for some of them. But the vast majority of species, likely including us, are fated for extinction. Makes you wonder if humans are going to be the earth's one and only experiment with 'intelligence' or if there is a Thinker version 2.0 out there in the future somewhere. (I will refrain from attempts to be wry or witty about how well humans have done.)

Regarding the physical and biological systems comprising Planet Earth, the only constant is change. Regarding the "smart money", the smart money is in dealing with change. Beginning, middle, and end of pedantic lecture.

On a more enjoyable note, the hobby or learning about, researching, and viewing craters (impact structures, astroblemes, etc) has occupied some of my daydreaming time over the last several years. Satellite imagery and other remote sensing technology has assisted in identifying a whole host of impact structures unknown when I was a geology student 45 years ago. On the first field trip I took from NC to the Rockies, we stopped in Middlesboro, KY on the first day, attempting to get a view of what was to be determined to be the Middlesboro Impact Structure. In the East and Midwest, heavy vegetation and deep soils can obscure impact structures, but we were able to get enough of a feel for it that hot June day in 1975 that curiosity about them has stayed with me ever since. An Appalachian State University classmate, Dr. Rufus Catchings, was part of a USGS team which studied a crater discovered in the early 1990s right at the mouth of Chesapeake Bay, right out the front door of our beach house. Who knew?

I hope you and The Lady will be able to go out and find some shatter cones soon, Ski!

Foy

 

[4XHOTEL]

Although not related to any of these extinction events, there are remnants of a large impact crater near Alamo, Nevada that is on our list for a future trip, to see if we can find the evidence.

You are likely speaking of the Alamo Megabreccia, discovered by Colorado School of Mines Professor John Warme. I was attending Mines in the early 90's while Dr. Warme was working his discovery through peer review, and hosting numerous field trips to numerous outcrops all over Nevada that supported his impact event hypothesis. The deposit is so huge that as a geologist you really have to step back, way back, to see the forest through the trees. The associated turbidite sequence is amazing as well.

http://www.geotimes.org/jan04/feature_Alamo.html

John

 

[ski3pin]

You are likely speaking of the Alamo Megabreccia, discovered by Colorado School of Mines Professor John Warme. I was attending Mines in the early 90's while Dr. Warme was working his discovery through peer review, and hosting numerous field trips to numerous outcrops all over Nevada that supported his impact event hypothesis. The deposit is so huge that as a geologist you really have to step back, way back, to see the forest through the trees. The associated turbidite sequence is amazing as well.

http://www.geotimes.org/jan04/feature_Alamo.html

John

Yes, this is it. Thanks for this link, appreciated.

 

[AWG_Pics]

The irony is rich having the Area 51/UFO frenzied folks worried about little green men, when the real extraterrestrial visitor that came to visit that very spot and never did leave was a chunk of rock likely from our asteroid belt. And it left quite an impression!