Science. 1995 Aug 18;269(5226):930-5. doi: 10.1126/science.269.5226.930.
Observations on shocked quartz in Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) boundary sediments compellingly tied to Chicxulub crater raise three problems. First, in North America shocked quartz occurs above the main K-T ejecta layer. Second, shocked quartz is more abundant west than east of Chicxulub. Third, shocked quartz reached distances requiring initial velocities up to 8 kilometers per second, corresponding to shock pressures that would produce melt, not the moderate-pressure shock lamellae observed. Shock devolatilization and the expansion of carbon dioxide and water from impacted wet carbonate, producing a warm, accelerating fireball after the initial hot fireball of silicate vapor, may explain all three problems.
白垩纪-第三纪（K-T）界线沉积物中冲击石英的观测结果与希克苏鲁伯陨石坑有密切联系，这提出了三个问题。首先，在北美洲，冲击石英出现在主要的 K-T 喷发物层之上。其次，冲击石英在希克苏鲁伯陨石坑的西部比东部更为丰富。第三，冲击石英到达的距离需要初始速度高达每秒 8 公里，对应的冲击压力会产生熔体，而不是观察到的中压冲击薄片。冲击去挥发作用以及撞击湿碳酸盐产生的二氧化碳和水的膨胀，在硅酸盐蒸汽的初始热火球之后产生一个温暖、加速的火球，这可能解释了所有这三个问题。
