This is the first full scientific paper on Tanis, an unprecedented site which preserves hundreds of fish corpses in exceptional condition along with extremely strong indicators that they were killed on the day of the Chixculub impact (most obviously, tektites or glass beads associated with the impact found in their gills). Co-authors include Walter Alvarez and Jan Smit, likely the two leading experts on the K-T event.
The paper and supplement are extremely narrow and are intended to show only that the site was created in a seiche triggered by seismic activity from the impact, and that the preserved animals there died in the event. It leaves very little reason to doubt this conclusion. However the site contains many specimens not included in the paper: previous conference abstracts indicate dinosaur tracks (https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2016AM/webprogram/Paper284267.htm...) and the burrow of a mammal which was made after the event but filled before the prevalent pollen had a chance to settle (https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2017AM/webprogram/Paper305627.htm...).
Even the topics discussed in the paper are truly remarkable and there are many firsts such as impact structures formed by tektites raining from the sky. A New Yorker article published on Friday (in apparent violation of the PNAS embargo, although it's not clear to me whether they were subject to it) tosses out mind-blowing details rapid-fire for pages on end. Press articles:
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[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 11.5 ms ] threadThe paper and supplement are extremely narrow and are intended to show only that the site was created in a seiche triggered by seismic activity from the impact, and that the preserved animals there died in the event. It leaves very little reason to doubt this conclusion. However the site contains many specimens not included in the paper: previous conference abstracts indicate dinosaur tracks (https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2016AM/webprogram/Paper284267.htm...) and the burrow of a mammal which was made after the event but filled before the prevalent pollen had a chance to settle (https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2017AM/webprogram/Paper305627.htm...).
Even the topics discussed in the paper are truly remarkable and there are many firsts such as impact structures formed by tektites raining from the sky. A New Yorker article published on Friday (in apparent violation of the PNAS embargo, although it's not clear to me whether they were subject to it) tosses out mind-blowing details rapid-fire for pages on end. Press articles:
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/04/08/the-day-the-di...
https://news.berkeley.edu/2019/03/29/66-million-year-old-dea...
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/03/fossils-f...
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/04/astonishment-skeptic...