Question – 116
Were all the proxy
features for identifying a cosmic impact mentioned in the Mahabharata?
Answer:
There are about 8
major proxy features for identifying a cosmic impact. Of them the three
must-be-present proxies are,
1. the loss of
iron oxide from the meteor (normally shrinks by 90%) and the rest only hits the
floor.
2. the loss of
titanium from the meteor. Both can be best identified in time series of peat
moss (because of exact dating of horizons with 14-C)
3. abundant
release of NO2 (nitrogen dioxide) in the atmosphere. The reddish-brown color of
this gas causes the water bodies and the rainwater to turn red. This is
recognized as ‘rain of blood’ or ‘rivers flowing with blood’ by the people.
All these are
detected in the data available for the impact of 3136 BCE. Any object entering
from space produces NOx. For example, a falling satellite back onto the earth
produces 7 tons of NOx. The Hastinapura event also produced NOx, expressed in
many ways as rain of blood, river of blood, vomit of blood, blood in the mouth,
in the body etc., explained as nimitta-s.
