Mega eruption may have wiped out [Cambrian] life

[Dann Pigdon <dannj@alphalink.com.au>]

http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1671983.htm

Mega eruption may have wiped out life
Larry O'Hanlon, Discovery News, Monday, 26 June 2006


Scattered rafts of black lava over northern and central Australia are  
really part of one gigantic volcanic field that appears to be one of  
oldest and largest on Earth, geologists believe.

If so, the half billion year old eruption might be the culprit in the  
first mass animal extinction event in the history of life.

Australian geologists used the chemical signatures of the far-flung  
basalt lava rocks and their ages to connect them to a single huge  
volcanic eruptive episode between 505 and 508 million years ago...

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Dann Pigdon
GIS / Archaeologist         http://heretichides.soffiles.com
Melbourne, Australia        http://www.geocities.com/dannsdinosaurs
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