Premium
Impact cratering at geologic stage boundaries
Author(s) -
Stothers Richard B.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/93gl00907
Subject(s) - stage (stratigraphy) , geology , impact crater , paleontology , cenozoic , earth science , astrobiology , physics , structural basin
The largest known Cenozoic impact craters with the most accurately measured ages are found to correlate very closely with geologic stage boundaries. The level of confidence in this result is 98–99% even under the most pessimistic assumptions concerning dating errors. One or more large impacts may have led, in at least some cases, to the extinctions and first appearances of biotic species that mark many of the geologic stage boundaries.