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(meteorobs) Re: Greenland Impact
(I keep trying to send this, but it keeps bouncing back. Hopefully all
three copies will not suddenly show up.)
I have actually spent a fun weekend trying to gather up the raw data on the
"Greenland Impact" and have come up with some interesting information.
Most of my time was spent examining the photographs from the satellites
NOAA 12 and NOAA 14. The latter produced the best photographic account of
the "impact plume".
The "event" was supposed to have occurred at 8:21 UT on December 9, 1997.
Images from the two NOAA satellites are available for 8:23, 10:12, 10:17,
14:26, 16:07, and 18:27, to name just a few. It is extremely bizarre that
absolutely no sign of the "plume" was visible until 14:26. This has to be
considered as very suspicious. Every model I have ever seen of Earth
impacts, as well as mine and everyone elses observations of the
Shoemaker-Levy 9 impacts, indicate that a plume should appear immediately.
I will accept that it may not have been visible at 8:23 because of possible
errors in the time of the observation, but it should easily have been
visible by 10:12 and 10:17. Instead, there is very little difference in the
cloud patterns of 8:23, 10:12, and 10:17, indicating rather serene
conditions.
When the "plume" is visible at 14:26 and 16:07, the first indication is
that it was rising. The reason for this was the shadow on the ground, which
is visible in the visible-light images. The shadow definitely moved
northward and a little eastward. On the other hand, shadows for other
clouds look slightly different as well, and calculations by myself, after
considering the angle of the sun, indicate the height of the "plume" did
not change between 14:26 and 16:07; thus, the rising "plume" is actually a
stationary "plume" made to look as if it was rising because of a changing
sun angle. Another image was obtained at 18:27. This also showed the
"plume", but the sun had apparently already set and no visible light images
were available, only infrared.
The only interesting item that has not been mentioned in other reports,
that I am puzzled by is the apparent temperature change within the "plume".
NOAA 14 photographed in different levels of infrared light. On images using
the "channel 3" level, the "plume" is very dark at 14:26, quite different
from other clouds, but white like other clouds at 16:07. I am not sure what
the explanation would be for this.
Finally, the last piece of evidence concerning this "impact" is the absence
of any seismic data. I searched several of the world database collections,
as well as seismic data from Denmark, Norway, and England, and found
nothing. Earthquakes with a magnitude of less than 2 were frequently
listed, but Greenland never experienced anything. Not on the 9th, or any of
the days before and after.
Unless some new information is offered, I have serious doubts that the
"Greenland Impact" actually happened. I agree with Marco Langbroek that we
might have a fireball, at best, and a coincidental cloud formation.
Sincerely,
Gary W. Kronk
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