Sea-floor methane blow-out and global firestorm at the K-T boundary

Geo-Marine Letters
By: , and 

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Abstract

A previously unsuspected source of fuel for the global firestorm recorded by soot in the Cretaceous-Tertiary impact layer may have resided in methane gas associated with gas hydrate in the end-Cretaceous seafloor. End-Cretaceous impact-generated shock and megawaves would have had the potential to initiate worldwide oceanic methane gas blow-outs from these deposits. The methane would likely have ignited and incompletely combusted. This large burst of methane would have been followed by longer-term methane release as a part of a positive thermal feedback in the disturbed ocean-atmosphere system.
Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Sea-floor methane blow-out and global firestorm at the K-T boundary
Series title Geo-Marine Letters
DOI 10.1007/s003670050081
Volume 18
Issue 4
Year Published 1999
Language English
Publisher Springer
Contributing office(s) Woods Hole Coastal and Marine Science Center
Description 7 p.
First page 285
Last page 291
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