Anomalous Landforms as Terrestrial Ejecta
Please reference the sub pages in the index on the left to explore this topic further.
Using the Carolina bays and the Goldsboro Ridge as examples, we propose set of physical characteristics for the manifestation of the Perigee: Zero Ejecta Landforms. These characteristics are tightly constrained by the formative processes and circumstances, resulting in a simple, well-defined and unique set of identification criteria to describe these formations. The stylistic geometry and anomalous, unstratified, and homogeneous nature of these landforms are presented as being most indicative of set membership. The typical PZ ejecta landforms are visualized as a pear-shaped, oval or elliptical landform, which sets above the surrounding landscape as a knoll, hill, or island. The figure below demonstrates the emplacement dynamics. The graphic is hyper-linked to a flash demonstration.
Flash Demonstration of Ejecta Emplacement
A series of experiments were conducted to demonstrate the physical process. The results are presented in the Technology section of the treatise. Impacting ejecta was modeled by propelling balls of plaster of differing consistency. When they impacted at shallow angles, the balls were spread as bay-shaped forms. More significantly, areas similar in shape to Carolina bays were formed within the surface of the test object. The example presented here was painted to highlight the "bay" areas (in blue).
Quite often the central area of the PZ ejecta slumps upon emplacement, and this slump is manifested as a body of water as it fills over time. We also present these pear-shaped structures existent underwater using various underwater imaging techniques. The scale of observed landforms range from ephemeral pools of a few meters on the major axis, to massive structures such as the Goldsboro Ridge Complex. Our research has shown that the emplacements slam onto the earth and typically remain at that location. Examples have been found on seafloor beds where an entire structure slides along the trajectory after initial contact, leaving a discernable trail in the soft surface sediments.
The two major parameters that affect the visualized shape of specific PZ ejecta landforms are the angle of incidence and the hydration ratio. Shallower arrival angles will yield a higher length to width ratio, and wetter material will slump to a greater degree that stiffer, dryer ejecta material. The underlying terrestrial landscape will influence the visualized ejecta shape, such that the stylized shape would be “broken” over terrain that was much rougher than the emplaced material thickness, or too steep to retain the ejecta intact. Nevertheless, we strongly suggest that the resulting PZ ejecta landforms are seen to retain the suggested geometry across the entire range of landform sizes, thereby facilitating the recognition of the ejecta using remote imaging techniques.
The standardized template used to identify and validate a proposed structure is shown below. The outline is used by us in the Google Earth facility as an overlay to discriminate ejecta deposits.
Generic PZ Ejecta Overlay
Using the identification criteria, we have selected a broad sample of PZ ejecta structures for presentation. Research has extended far beyond the documented locale of the Carolina bays. We present supportive evidence of their existence throughout the globe. Significant fields of ejecta are noted in Argentina, South Africa and Southwestern Australia.
It is our opinion that the majority of naturally occurring fresh water bodies are comet crater or ejecta structures created over the past 13,000 years. Further, when considering the “standing” variety of ejecta, the surface of the earth is seen as extensively covered by ejecta.
We present here an example of the classic oval/teardrop shape ejecta. Oneka Lake is in the St. Paul area, one of many that exhibits the ejecta form.
The generalized shape is most easily recognized when the emplacement is on a sold, level foundation. This is especially true if it is a thin veneer of ejecta, vs. a dense divot. Here is a GE composite from the Argentina ejecta gallery that suggests a fairly slushy splash composition.
Slushy splash composition
Given a very flat surface, even a very thin veneer of ejecta splash can be identified. Here is another GE composite from Argentina.
Thin veneer of ejecta splash
The hypothesis suggests that when the ejecta are less hydrous, a “standing” landform results. These are manifested as various mounds, knolls, ridges, hills and mountains. The accretive nature of PZ ejecta suggests that overlapping ejecta emplacements may cover large areas. In larger emplacements, this may result in gross layering of thick megabreccias, with components arriving from different ejection points, with varying compositions.
The process of emplacement is augmented by accretion. The composite land-forms produced can be quite varied in geography. The Metropolitan area of Koebenhagen (Copenhagen) is shown in this graphic, highlighted in GE with generic PZ Ejecta overlays.
Another possible 'level" landing site would be the ocean bottom. If the depth exceeds the standing height of the ejecta emplacement, the structure will stay submerged. If the depth is close to the "peaks" of the ejecta, islands will result. A long traverse of Carolina bays dott the eastern shorline of the DelMar Peninsula. Here is a GE view of Saxis Island area, at the top of the Peninsula.
The line of bays, many mere ghosts of their former selves after centuries of farming, march down the spine of the penisnula.
90 kilimoters south, off the very tip of the DelMar Pinsula, lies a pair of islands, that collectively constitiute a complete Carolian bay, rim floating above the waters of the Chesapeak, and the "bay" forming an actual bay. A modern marvel, the Chesapeak Bay and Bridge & Tunnel, cuts across on its way south.
While the samples shown here may be dismissed as mere meandering river horseshoes, the riggerous repetative alignment invaidates that solution. Furthermore, we see form the formations that they can be found to be formed at significantly different elevations, all while being effectively co-located. The following graphic depicts a cross-sectional profiel view of an area in South Carolina. Note that the adjacent bay floors and ridges are offset verticallyby many meters of elevation.
