“I really wanted to find this rumored place where there were a lot of rocks resulting from explosive volcanic eruptions,” says Elkins-Tanton, “because that’s the only way we know that it can effectively conduct chemicals into the upper atmosphere in which will revolve around the entire planet. ” It was approaching the geological signs of apocalyptic climate change.
Before this region from Siberia tried to destroy all multicellular life on the planet, it was a peaceful inland sea, which dried up and left behind an “evaporite basin”. Evaporation of the water deposited a layer of limestone and minerals rich in chlorine and bromine; Think of it as the dirt left behind when you forget coffee or tea in a cup. Finally, a swamp grew on this mineral layer. As plants and animals decomposed, they deposited layers of coal, oil, and gas. “Basically, that whole area of central Siberia is like a layer cake of toxic material, all created by Mother Nature,” says Elkins-Tanton.
The secret ingredient in this layer cake is magma, which flowed from the depths and was injected between layers of toxic sedimentary rocks formed by the dry sea. “Coal was last at the top, but we know that coal covered the entire basin,” says Elkins-Tanton.
To cause a mass extinction that unfolded in just tens of thousands of years, somehow all of that carbon had to suddenly burn up and quickly heat up the entire planet. “There are only a few things that cause global change like that,” says Elkins-Tanton. “One is a giant meteorite attack, that there is no evidence of it. It would have to be really big and the evidence would be there. Another is a nuclear war, pretty sure it didn’t happen. “
A third option, Elkins-Tanton continues, is “You have to find a way to change the whole atmosphere. And the way to change the entire atmosphere is to bring chemicals into the stratosphere. ” For that, you need an explosive volcanic eruption and, critically for Elkins-Tanton, you need the rocks to prove it.
But not all volcanoes are so irritating. For example, at this time Kilauea is not explosive because it is magma (what you call sticky things while still underground, becomes wash when it emerges) it is relatively thin and liquid. When Kilauea’s magma bubbles to the surface, it releases its gases in an orderly fashion.
Mount St. Helens, on the other hand, was filled with relatively thick magma, which better traps gases. As it rises, the magma mass suddenly becomes more buoyant and expands. And that means a bigger blowout. “If you have enough gas in the magma, instead of bubbling like soup, it explodes like a bottle of soda,” says Elkins-Tanton. “The carbon dioxide in soft drinks is in solution. It is not in the form of bubbles until you shake it or open it. And that’s the same as releasing pressure when magma gets close to the surface and all volatiles form bubbles. “
“That’s like Pinatubo or Mount St. Helens, but on a much larger scale,” he continues. “And those things have enough heat and gases that fully rise up and pierce through the tropopause into the stratosphere.” The tropopause is a boundary layer between the troposphere – the part of the atmosphere we call home – and the stratosphere, which begins approximately 6 miles above sea level. The troposphere is relatively chaotic, filled with all kinds of clouds, winds, and weather systems, while the stratosphere is relatively calm. (Planes fly in this area to avoid turbulence, in fact.)
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