Geochemical evidence for a catastrophic biotic event at the Frasnian/Famennian boundary in south China

Wang, Kun; Orth, C. J.; Attrep, Moses; Chatterton, Brian D. E.; Hanru, Hou; Geldsetzer, H. H. J.

doi:10.1130/0091-7613(1991)019<0776:gefacb>2.3.co;2

Cited by 101 publications

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“…As reviewed by Sandberg et al (2002), the Late Frasnian mass extinction occured just prior to 364 Ma (within 20,000 years), representing a major extinction event that decimated most groups of marine organisms. This event has been associated with alleged impact evidence, including a weak iridium enrichment found at the Frasnian/Famennian boundary in southern China (Wang et al 1991) and in a crossboundary section in the state of New York (Over et al 1997). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laser argon dating of melt breccias from the Siljan impact structure, Sweden: Implications for a possible relationship to Late Devonian extinction events

Reimold

Kelley

Sherlock

et al. 2005

Meteoritics &Amp; Planetary Science

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Abstract-In earlier studies, the 65-75 km diameter Siljan impact structure in Sweden has been linked to the Late Devonian mass extinction event. The Siljan impact event has previously been dated by KAr and Ar-Ar chronology at 342-368 Ma, with the commonly quoted age being 362.7 ± 2.2 Ma (2 σ, recalculated using currently accepted decay constants). Until recently, the accepted age for the Frasnian/Famennian boundary and associated extinction event was 364 Ma, which is within error limits of this earlier Siljan age. Here we report new Ar-Ar ages extracted by laser spot and laser step heating techniques for several melt breccia samples from Siljan (interpreted to be impact melt breccia). The analytical results show some scatter, which is greater in samples with more extensive alteration; these samples generally yield younger ages. The two samples with the least alteration yield the most reproducible weighted mean ages: one yielded a laser spot age of 377.2 ± 2.5 Ma (95% confidence limits) and the other yielded both a laser spot age of 376.1 ± 2.8 Ma (95% confidence limits) and a laser stepped heating plateau age over 70.6% 39 Ar release of 377.5 ± 2.4 Ma (2 σ). Our conservative estimate for the age of Siljan is 377 ± 2 Ma (95% confidence limits), which is significantly different from both the previously accepted age for the Frasnian/Famennian (F/F) boundary and the previously quoted age of Siljan. However, the age of the F/F boundary has recently been revised to 374.5 ± 2.6 Ma by the International Commission for Stratigraphy, which is, within error, the same as our new age. However, the currently available age data are not proof that there was a connection between the Siljan impact event and the F/F boundary extinction. This new result highlights the dual problems of dating meteorite impacts where fine-grained melt rocks are often all that can be isotopically dated, and constraining the absolute age of biostratigraphic boundaries, which can only be constrained by age extrapolation. Further work is required to develop and improve the terrestrial impact age record and test whether or not the terrestrial impact flux increased significantly at certain times, perhaps resulting in major extinction events in Earth's biostratigraphic record.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Laser argon dating of melt breccias from the Siljan impact structure, Sweden: Implications for a possible relationship to Late Devonian extinction events

Reimold

Kelley

Sherlock

et al. 2005

Meteoritics &Amp; Planetary Science

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“…However, the Ir levels are generally significantly weaker (100s of ppt) than the typical K/T iridium anomaly, and the anomalies are commonly associated with nonchondritic element abundance patterns (Kyte, 1988;Orth et al, 1990;Wang et al, 1991;Wang et al, 1993a,b). This has led to the general conclusion that the Ir peaks are probably unrelated to impact processes (Orth et al, 1990), although Kyte (1988) listed six such sedimentary horizons as "possible" impact horizons (Cenomanian/Turonian , Callovian/Oxfordian , Early/Middle Jurassic , Permian/Triassic , Frasnian/Famennian , and Proterozoic/Cambrian , see Figure 1).…”

Section: Geologic Evidence Of Large Impactsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The “Shiva Hypothesis”: Impacts, mass extinctions, and the galaxy

Rampino

Haggerty

1996

Earth Moon Planet

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“…An exhaustive search was initiated in the 1980s for evidence of a cosmic ca− tastrophe as the prime cause of the F-F mass extinction [= Kellwasser (KW) Racki et al (2011). assumed extraterrestrial proxies (e.g., negative d 13 C excur− sions and violent high−energy events) were proved to be in− conclusive in subsequent studies (Table 1; McGhee 1996;Hallam and Wignall 1997;Racki 1999). In the Luoxiu section, southern China, a fourfold increase in Ir values with a 0.24 ppb spike has been observed to coincide with the F-F boundary (Wang et al 1991). In the Kowala succession of Poland, a newly recognized eightfold Ir enrichment merely reaches a maximum of 0.08 ppb (Fig.…”

Section: The Late Ordovician Mass Extinctionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impacts and Mass Extinctions Revisited

Morrow¹

2006

PALAIOS

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BioOne (www.bioone.org) is a nonprofit, online aggregation of core research in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences. BioOne provides a sustainable online platform for over 170 journals and books published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Web site, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne's Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/page/terms_of_use.Usage of BioOne content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder.The Alvarez impact theory of mass extinction; limits to its applicability and the "great expectations syndrome" GRZEGORZ RACKI Racki, G. 2012. The Alvarez impact theory of mass extinction; limits to its applicability and the "great expectations syn− drome". Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 57 (4): 681-702.For the past three decades, the Alvarez impact theory of mass extinction, causally related to catastrophic meteorite im− pacts, has been recurrently applied to multiple extinction boundaries. However, these multidisciplinary research efforts across the globe have been largely unsuccessful to date, with one outstanding exception: the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. The unicausal impact scenario as a leading explanation, when applied to the complex fossil record, has resulted in force−fitting of data and interpretations ("great expectations syndrome". The misunderstandings can be grouped at three successive levels of the testing process, and involve the unreflective application of the impact paradigm: (i) factual misidentification, i.e., an erroneous or indefinite recognition of the extraterrestrial record in sedimentological, physical and geochemical contexts, (ii) correlative misinterpretation of the adequately documented impact signals due to their in− correct dating, and (iii) causal overestimation when the proved impact characteristics are doubtful as a sufficient trigger of a contemporaneous global cosmic catastrophe. Examples of uncritical belief in the simple cause−effect scenario for the Frasnian-Famennian, Permian-Triassic, and Triassic-Jurassic (and the Eifelian-Givetian and Paleocene-Eocene as well) global events include mostly item−1 pitfalls (factual misidentification), with Ir enrichments and shocked minerals frequently misidentified. Therefore, these mass extinctions are still at the first test level, and only the F-F extinction is po− tentially seen in the context of item−2, the interpretative step, because of the possible causative link with the Siljan Ring crater (53 km in diameter). The erratically recognized cratering signature is often marked by large timing and size uncer− tainties, and item−3, the advanced causal inference, is in fact limited to clustered impacts that clearly predate major mass extinctions. The multi−impact lag−time pattern is particularly clear in the Late Triassic, when the largest (100 km diame−...

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Geochemical evidence for a catastrophic biotic event at the Frasnian/Famennian boundary in south China

Cited by 101 publications

References 0 publications

Laser argon dating of melt breccias from the Siljan impact structure, Sweden: Implications for a possible relationship to Late Devonian extinction events

Laser argon dating of melt breccias from the Siljan impact structure, Sweden: Implications for a possible relationship to Late Devonian extinction events

The “Shiva Hypothesis”: Impacts, mass extinctions, and the galaxy

Impacts and Mass Extinctions Revisited

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