RETRACTED: A 12,800-year-old layer with cometary dust, microspherules, and platinum anomaly recorded in multiple cores from Baffin Bay
Table B2
Analysis of YDB Cosmic Dust Particle (MDP) Influx: The table analyzes the estimated influx of CDPs globally based on data from Baffin Bay cores. Based on an average diameter of 30 µm and an estimated number per layer (n = 30) from Baffin cores, the global flux of CDPs is ~ 8.8 million metric tons, assuming a 6-month atmospheric fallout time, potentially extending to several years for smaller CDPs. This estimate represents ~3390 times the typical 6-month flux rate of cosmic material to Earth, estimated at 5200 tons/yr [29]. These values are ~ 3 × lower than, but still comparable to predictions ranging from 400 to 30 million tons of cometary dust expected in the trail of a 100-km diameter disintegrating comet in a short-period orbit [6]. For this analysis, we assume that 1) all particles were homogeneous with an average density of Fe; 2) all particles were introduced to Earth’s atmosphere during 24 hours but most likely took 6 months to be deposited into Baffin Bay; 3) concentrations and mass values in Baffin Bay are representative of the entire planet and; 4) the diameter of the YDB comet was a 100 km. Justification for assumption #3 comes from Wittke et al.[42], who estimated ∼10 million tons of melted microspherules were deposited at the YDB over 50 million square kilometers on four continents, suggesting global, near-global, or hemispheric deposition of YDB impact proxies, including CDPs. These calculations are estimations with large, inherent uncertainties.