TITLE:
Uncommon and Impact-Suspicious Geologic Phenomena across Jordan and Adjacent Areas, Arabian Plate
AUTHORS:
Werner Schneider, Elias Salameh
KEYWORDS:
Impact-Suspicious Phenomena, Ricochet Impact, Impact-Related SiO2-Modifications, Sanidine-Hornfels-Impact Facies, Rapid Climate Change, Holocene, Hoyle’s Comet, Rise and Fall of Neolithic/Bronze Age Cultures, Coincidence of Natural and Cultural Evidence, Jordan
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Geology,
Vol.4 No.12,
December
31,
2014
ABSTRACT: For the discovery and
analysis of Jebel Waqf as Suwwan
(JWS) Impact Crater, Jordan pushed the authors to consequently focusing on
other unusual geologic phenomena such as circular/oval structures (some of
“crypto-volcanic” origin), disharmonic folding, horizontal stylolites, and a
broad stripe ofSanidine-Hornfels-Facies, all of them hosted in Upper
Cretaceous/Paleogene carbonate rocks exposed across Jordan and adjacent areas.
Shatter cones are the most useful tools during field work in the realm of
circular structures. In addition to the impact-geologic data of JWS Impact
Structure hitherto available, the cooling process of melted Lower Cretaceous
Kurnub-Sandstone could be verified by microscopically identified SiO2-modifications
between the melting point (1714°C) and low temperatures. In comparison with the
Suffield 500 tons explosion tests [20] and with the Ries Impact Crater, Germany, excavation and
vaporization processes of target rocks demand drilling between Central Uplift
and Inner Ring of the JWS Impact Structure (“Chert-Carbonate-Impact-Chess
Game”). In a scenario: “Impacting meets Plate Tectonics”, phenomena like
disharmonic folding, horizontal stylolites, and an abundance of circular/oval
structures of high diameter variation through northwest Jordan are discussed
under aspects of gravitational gliding, effects of seismic surface waves
(Love-), transpressional structures related to Jordan Rift-Tectonics, and
possible impact processes of unknown number occurred on the Arabian Plate in
southeastern direction with northwest-directed impulse. The so-called “Mottled
Zone” of Jordan and Palestine owning a high number (~100) of mineral
neoformations with formation temperatures up to ~1120°C(pseudo-wollastonite = β-CaSiO3), is to be
interpreted as of “Sanidine-Hornfels-Impact Facies” under ricochet conditions
along an “Avenue of Ricochet-Impact-Thermo-Cataclysm”. Marble-related
travertines represent a low temperature facies of the impact event. The
temporal projection of patterns like Rapid Climate Change (RCC), astrophysical
data [Hoyle’s Comet: 47], acid events in ice-cores, tektite fall, Rise and Fall
of Neolithic/Bronze Age Cultures, reveals an amazing “Ensemble” of coincidences
among all of these parameters since the Middle/Upper Pleistocene boundary
throughout Holocene. Ten short Interval Cases are discussed as being “Rare
Event”- suspicious. Myths like the “Gilgamesch Epos” and “John’s Apocalypse”
surprisingly provide realistic hints on impact events comparable with modern
observations and experiments, which are: approach of extraterrestrial bodies,
impact cratering, earthquakes and faulting, supercyclonic whirl-storms
(wildfires), effects of hot ejecta, destruction of fauna, flora, and cities,
long-lasting flooding, darkness caused by ashes and dust circulating in
atmosphere and stratosphere (sintwinter), and environmental pollution. Such
hints were handed down in myths of ~180 ethnic peoples around the globe. “High
probability Cases” focus on impact events on ~9600 yr B.P and on ~6000 yr B.P. Other
“Rare Events” may have possibly occurred about ~8000 yr B.P. and on ~3200 yr.
B.P. (all radiocarbon yr.cal.).
Core-drilling in the pull-apart basins of the Jordan Rift System (Dead Sea, Lake
Tiberias) as traps having possibly preserved volcanic and impact ejecta would
be a challenging international and interdisciplinary project.