2002/08/23 by Gary R. Byerly, Donald R. Lowe, Joseph L. Wooden +1 · 1 citation
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Geological and Geochemical Analysis #Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils #Geology and Paleoclimatology Research #Archean #Craton #Geology #Zircon #Greenstone belt #Geochemistry #Yilgarn Craton #Impact crater #Earth science #Precambrian #Unconformity #Paleontology #Tectonics #Astrobiology #Sedimentary rock
paper · doi:10.1126/science.1073934
openalex publication_date 2002/08/23 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
The Barberton greenstone belt of South Africa and the eastern Pilbara block of Western Australia provide information about Earth's surface environments between 3.2 and 3.5 billion years ago, including evidence for four large bolide impacts that likely created large craters, deformed the target rocks, and altered the environment. We have obtained identical single-zircon uranium-lead ages of 3470 +/- 2 million years ago for the oldest impact events from each craton. These deposits represent a single global fallout layer that is associated with sedimentation by an impact-generated tsunami and in Western Australia is represented by a major erosional unconformity.