Evidence of cosmic impact at Abu Hureyra, Syria at the Younger Dryas Onset (~12.8 ka): High-temperature melting at >2200 °C

Andrew M.T. Moore; James P. Kennett; Douglas J. Kennett; William M. Napier; Ted E. Bunch; James C. Weaver; Malcolm A. LeCompte; Victor Adedji; Paul C. Hackley; Jacob B. Lowenstern; Gunther K. Kletetschka; Brendan J. Culleton; Robert E. Hermes; James H. Wittke; Joshua J. Razink; Michael Gaultois; Allen West

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-60867-w

Evidence of cosmic impact at Abu Hureyra, Syria at the Younger Dryas Onset (~12.8 ka): High-temperature melting at >2200 °C

Scientific Reports

By: Andrew M.T. Moore, James P. Kennett, Douglas J. Kennett, William M. Napier, Ted E. Bunch, James C. Weaver, Malcolm A. LeCompte, Victor Adedji, Paul C. Hackley, Jacob B. Lowenstern, Gunther K. Kletetschka, Brendan J. Culleton, Robert E. Hermes, James H. Wittke, Joshua J. Razink, Michael Gaultois, and Allen West

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-60867-w

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Abstract

At Abu Hureyra (AH), Syria, the 12,800-year-old Younger Dryas boundary layer (YDB) contains peak abundances in meltglass, nanodiamonds, microspherules, and charcoal. AH meltglass comprises 1.6 wt.% of bulk sediment, and crossed polarizers indicate that the meltglass is isotropic. High YDB concentrations of iridium, platinum, nickel, and cobalt suggest mixing of melted local sediment with small quantities of meteoritic material. Approximately 40% of AH glass display carbon-infused, siliceous plant imprints that laboratory experiments show formed at a minimum of 1200°–1300 °C; however, reflectance-inferred temperatures for the encapsulated carbon were lower by up to 1000 °C. Alternately, melted grains of quartz, chromferide, and magnetite in AH glass suggest exposure to minimum temperatures of 1720 °C ranging to >2200 °C. This argues against formation of AH meltglass in thatched hut fires at 1100°–1200 °C, and low values of remanent magnetism indicate the meltglass was not created by lightning. Low meltglass water content (0.02–0.05% H₂O) is consistent with a formation process similar to that of tektites and inconsistent with volcanism and anthropogenesis. The wide range of evidence supports the hypothesis that a cosmic event occurred at Abu Hureyra ~12,800 years ago, coeval with impacts that deposited high-temperature meltglass, melted microspherules, and/or platinum at other YDB sites on four continents.

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Additional publication details
Publication type	Article
Publication Subtype	Journal Article
Title	Evidence of cosmic impact at Abu Hureyra, Syria at the Younger Dryas Onset (~12.8 ka): High-temperature melting at >2200 °C
Series title	Scientific Reports
DOI	10.1038/s41598-020-60867-w
Volume	10
Year Published	2020
Language	English
Publisher	Springer
Contributing office(s)	Eastern Energy Resources Science Center
Description	4185, 22 p.
Country	Syria
Other Geospatial	Abu Hureyra
Google Analytic Metrics	Metrics page