A more interesting read than I thought it would be and clarified several grey areas.

>>The interstellar object (alternatively a comet or an asteroid) that killed the dinosaurs when it slammed into Earth didn’t work alone. Researchers have shown previously that its after-effects, such as tidal waves and earthquakes, played an important role in the mass extinctions of three-fourths of plant and animal life. Now, new research suggests that one of the most important factors was the soot-rich smoke from fires sparked by the collision.

Clay Tabor, a geoscientist at the University of Connecticut, and his colleagues studied soot, sulfates and dust to see how each type of particle may have contributed to the cataclysm. They found that while all three particles blocked heat from the sun, soot played a dominant role. The results were published earlier this year in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.<<

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/soot-dinosaur-impact-180974708/

that’s right blame Morrison for everything

I misread that ‘…Sooty played a remarkable role…’.

I know that he was a bit rough with Sweep at times, but being responsible for extinctions is quite a rap to pin on a little panda glove puppet.

> Clay Tabor, a geoscientist at the University of Connecticut, and his colleagues studied soot, sulfates and dust to see how each type of particle may have contributed to the cataclysm. They found that while all three particles blocked heat from the sun, soot played a dominant role.

That’s unexpected, but it makes sense – sort of.

Soot has lots of particles of the size range that’s perfect for hanging around in the atmosphere for a long time. They would definitely hang around affecting the climate for years whereas sulfates and dust would both be cleansed from the atmosphere within a couple of months at most.

By the way, the dominant way in which soot leaves the atmosphere is called “washout”, ie. being caught up in raindrops. It’s not the effect of gravity on the soot particles, as you might think, or electrostatic attraction.

mollwollfumble said:

> Clay Tabor, a geoscientist at the University of Connecticut, and his colleagues studied soot, sulfates and dust to see how each type of particle may have contributed to the cataclysm. They found that while all three particles blocked heat from the sun, soot played a dominant role.

That’s unexpected, but it makes sense – sort of.

Soot has lots of particles of the size range that’s perfect for hanging around in the atmosphere for a long time. They would definitely hang around affecting the climate for years whereas sulfates and dust would both be cleansed from the atmosphere within a couple of months at most.

By the way, the dominant way in which soot leaves the atmosphere is called “washout”, ie. being caught up in raindrops. It’s not the effect of gravity on the soot particles, as you might think, or electrostatic attraction.

> Sulfates also played an important role. The longest-lasting particles reduced the light to about 77 percent of normal, blocking light for nearly six years.

The dominant deposition mechanism for sulfate particles is electrostatic attraction. Followed by washout.