Earth Overdue for a Mass Extinction Event

[mountainclmbr]

From:

http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/002689.html

BERKELEY, CA  A detailed and extensive new analysis of the fossil records of marine animals over the past 542 million years has yielded a stunning surprise. Biodiversity appears to rise and fall in mysterious cycles of 62 million years for which science has no satisfactory explanation. The analysis, performed by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the University of California at Berkeley, has withstood thorough testing so that confidence in the results is above 99-percent.

Think about a massive die-off of most of the species on planet Earth that would make environmentalist fears of human-inflicted damage to the environment seem puny in comparison. We are talking about a die-off that would make a first class Hollywood disaster movie. Heck, it could even be made into a series of movies and civilization progressively collapses as our stars fight their way toward the few areas where humans are managing to hang on.

Muller and Rohde have entertained many hypotheses for what might have caused the die-off. But their theorizing is still at the stage of hunches. Either periodic passage of the solar system through molecular clouds or periodic massive volcanic eruptions could be behind the massive die-offs.

Muller and Rohde have been working on this study for nearly two years, and first discovered the 62 million year biodiversity cycle in November, 2003. They spent the next year trying to either knock it down or explain it. Despite examining 14 possible geophysical and astronomical causes of the cycles, no clear explanation emerged. Muller and Rohde each has his own favorite guess.

The latest theory I saw has the Earth's position in the Milky Way's spiral bands moving from top to bottom of the band in a 62 million year cycle. The Milky Way is travelling in a flat manner such that the extinctions appear to happen when the Earth emerges on the side in the direction of movement where there is nothing to shield from impacts with gas molecules and all sorts of cosmic rays. I will try to find a reference for that theory.

Note that the last mass extinction was 65 million years ago.

[Brad Johnson]

OHH NNNNNNNOOOOOoooooooo......!!!!!!!

 

Brad

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

The sky is falling!!!

Quick!  Form a UN intergovernmental panel!  We need awareness, and money, and dubious research, and power, and graft.  And by God, we need CONSENSUS!!!

Oh dear God!  Without CONSENSUS we're doooomed!

[Tallpine]

And I say it's about time.  Evolution is obviously falling down on the job

[mountainclmbr]

If you see an asteroid, don't forget to duck! More information here:

http://www.astrosciences.info/cycles.htm

Moran said the new measurement of the solar system orbit adds new accuracy to a fundamental fact of the universe: Everything is moving constantly.

The Earth rotates on its axis at about 1,100 miles an hour, a motion that creates day and night.

The Earth orbits the sun at about 67,000 miles an hour, a motion that takes one year.

The sun circles the Milky Way at a speed of about 486,000 miles per hour. And every object in the universe is moving apart from the other objects as the universe expands at a constantly accelerating rate.

In it's orbit around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, our Solar system may also do this little sinusoidal motion from the top to the bottom to the top (and so on) of the Orion arm which we go around in. Now, what if the period of one cycle through the arm is around 124 Million years ? Within one cycle we would pass through the middle of the ring (the most dense part) twice and about every 62 million years.

[charby]

Lets start tailgating now for the big event.

[Perd Hapley]

I thought our system was between spiral arms, rather than being on a spiral arm. 

[Brad Johnson]

I thought our system was between spiral arms, rather than being on a spiral arm. 

Depends on how much you've been drinking.

Brad

[Harold Tuttle]

we are also overdue for the magnetic core to flip
(which could be tied into the asteroid impact cycle)

The ice age is coming, the sun's zooming in
Meltdown expected, the wheat is growing thin
Engines stop running, but I have no fear
'Cause London is drowning, and I live by the river

[HankB]

. . . every object in the universe is moving apart from the other objects as the universe expands at a constantly accelerating rate. .

I'm aware that science says the universe is expanding, but I've never heard that the rate of expansion was accelerating. I'd be real interested in knowing what mechanism is responsible for acceleration.

[Marnoot]

I'm aware that science says the universe is expanding, but I've never heard that the rate of expansion was accelerating. I'd be real interested in knowing what mechanism is responsible for acceleration.

Usual Wikipedia caveats and all, as this article doesn't list its sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accelerating_universe. A Google search returns numerous articles on the subject, as well.

[K Frame]

We're overdue for a mass extinction, we're overdue for a cataclysmic meteor/comet/asteroid impact, we're overdue for a pandemic, and my Phillies are overdue to win the frigging World Series.

I don't expect any of them to happen anytime soon.

[Jamisjockey]

If your Phillies win, please give us all fair warning so we can stock up on TEOTWAWKI supplies.....




Seriously, I'm hoping that mass extinction comes soon.  And I hope Kalifornistan is the epicenter.

[Manedwolf]

If your Phillies win, please give us all fair warning so we can stock up on TEOTWAWKI supplies.....




Seriously, I'm hoping that mass extinction comes soon.  And I hope Kalifornistan is the epicenter.

Well, if all the Indonesian earthquakes and all truly wake up Krakatoa, and I mean REALLY wake it up, we'd all likely hear the bang around the globe, and California would get hit with the tsunami...

[Fly320s]

Should I wear earplugs for the bang? 

I want to have good hearing during the melt down.

[Manedwolf]

Should I wear earplugs for the bang? 

I want to have good hearing during the melt down.

That one, no. Now, if Yellowstone blew up, definitely. 

[mountainclmbr]

My view to the west is blocked by the continental divide. But, I may get some view if this thing hits Komifornistan as the concensus seems to hope for. Have to drag the beach chairs onto the back deck to be ready. Make note to pick up extra beer and chips. Find where I put those sun glasses.

I also did not understand the statement about the universe expanding with a constant acceleration. Must have flunked physics class.

[mountainclmbr]

Oh no, it may be happening now! Better beat the rush for beer and chips!

From this site that the GW crowd must love:

www.well.com/user/davidu/extinction.html

UNITED NATIONS: HUMANS CAUSING GREATEST MASS EXTINCTION IN 65 MILLION YEARS (Reuters-- 2006)

American Museum of Natural History Official Statement on Current Mass Extinction

American Museum of Natural History Press Release on Current Mass Extinction

Fastest Mass Extinction in Earth's History (Worldwatch Report)

Earth Faces Catastrophic Loss of Species (U.K. Independent-- 2006)

SCIENTISTS AGREE WORLD FACES MASS EXTINCTION (CNN-- 2002)

Earth Faces Sixth Mass Extinction (New Scientist-- 2004)

THE SIXTH EXTINCTION by Richard Leakey

The Sixth Extinction (National Geographic Magazine)

The Sixth Extinction (American Museum of Natural History)

Wake-Up Call on Extinction Wave (British Royal Society-- 2003)

GLOBAL EXTINCTION CRISIS CONFIRMED-- 2000 IUCN Red List Released

Mass Extinction Pace Quickening: Red List 2000 Released (N.Y. Times)

Headlong Drive to Mass Extinction-- 2002 Red List Released (Toronto Globe and Mail)

12,000 Threatened Species: "Only Scratching the Surface"-- 2003 Red List Released (U.K. Guardian)

15,589 Threatened Species: "Greatly Underestimates True Number"-- 2004 Red List Released (MSNBC)

16,119 Threatened Species-- 40% of Evaluated Species Are Threatened-- 2006 Red List (IUCN-- 2006)

Global Warming Threatens Extinction of One Million Species (Nature-- 2004)

Huge Extinction Risks of Global Warming Confirmed (Reuters-- 2006)

By 2050 Global Warming Will Doom A Million Species (National Geographic-- 2004)

BRITISH STUDY CONFIRMS WORLDWIDE MASS EXTINCTION (Science-- 2004)

Two Thirds of World's Species May Be Threatened (EurekAlert/AAAS-- 2005)

1998 Comprehensive Data on Plant Extinction Rate (N.Y. Times)

1996 Comprehensive Data on Animal Extinction Rate (IUCN)

World's Biodiversity Becoming Extinct (International Botanical Congress)

Scientists Warn of Mass Extinction (Environmental News Network)

CNN Special Report on Mass Extinction

Human Impact Triggers Massive Extinctions (Environment News Service)

Unprecedented Extinction Rate (World Conservation Union)

The Current Mass Extinction (Scientific American)

Wave of Extinctions Sweeping the Planet (United Nations)

Biodiversity Under Siege (Environmental News Network)

World Facing Greatest Extinction Risk Since Dinosaurs Disappeared (IUCN)

The Current Mass Extinction (PBS)

Mammals, Fish, Birds, Amphibians, Reptiles Suffering Major Declines (Worldwatch)

ONE QUARTER OF MAMMALS FACE EXTINCTION WITHIN 30 YEARS (United Nations-- BBC-- 2002)

Global Picture of Death, Damage and Destruction (United Nations)

Grim Picture of Extinction (2003 World Parks Conference)

[lupinus]

Here's the thing, we are speaking in terms of give or take afew million years.  Thats a LONG time.  Human being in their current form have only been around roughly 100k years.  The beginings of society?  About 20 thousand.  Hell Rome was 2,000 years ago, high Greece?  A few thousand before that.  Humans have really only been on the high trake for less then ten thousand years.  We are a stutter so far, I have no worries when we speak in terms of millions of years and human existence.

[Sindawe]

Humans.  Doing the job that Mother Nature no longer wants to do.   

[Matthew Carberry]

If life came from the ocean, that makes us the original wetbacks.

[woodcdi]

Maybe this is why I have exuded so much gas lately - possibly fueling the Apocalypse?

I feel so GUILTY!

Woody

  Yelling "FIRE!" in a crowded theater should only result in a profusion of bullet holes in the screen where the villain last appeared...     B.E.Wood

[Perd Hapley]

Hell Rome was 2,000 years ago, high Greece?  A few thousand before that.

Huh? 

[vernal45]

BERKELEY, CA

Where I stopped reading.

[lupinus]

Huh? 

I'm just saying looking at human history and what we consider a long time is jsut a blip on the earths time line.  OUr great ancient civiliations span a few thousand years out of a few billion years the Earth has been around.  When we are talking in terms of give or take a few million years I could really care less as we haven't even had much in the way of civiliation for a fraction of that. Puts things into perspective that we are talking a really large margin.