Günther Graup

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Günther Graup (born September 13, 1940 in Landshut ; † April 24, 2006 in Wörrstadt ) was a German geologist and impact researcher .

Act

Günther Graup mainly dealt with mineralogical-petrographic topics, including essentially the Ries event , the KT impact and the lunar rocks .

In his doctoral thesis at the Eberhard Karls University in Tübingen , he examined the crystalline of the Nördlinger Ries. As a result, essential knowledge about the distribution of the ejection products and the ejection mechanism during the Ries event was gained. During the US Apollo program , he worked as an impact researcher on the investigation of lunar rocks ( Apollo 14 and Apollo 16 ).

In 1981, Graup first found terrestrial chondrons in the suevite of the Ries crater, which have structural similarities with meteoritic chondrules. Since the formation of the lunar and meteoritic chondrons has not yet been clarified, the formation during meteoritic collisions seems to be a possible explanation. Likewise, Graup et al. It can be proven that the Moldavites originated from the deposits of the Upper Freshwater Molasse, which were in the area of ​​the Nördlinger Ries . This provided evidence that these tektites have a terrestrial origin and were formed during the Ries event .

In 1989, three stratigraphically independent iridium anomalies were identified by Graup et al. In the area of ​​the Chalk-Tertiary border of the Lattengebirge ( Berchtesgaden Alps ) . presented. No findings could be found there that indicate an impact . Rather, the exact geochemical data point to a volcanic origin (including a positive correlation with selenium ), which occurs at a time with sea level and climate fluctuations. Three independent Iridium anomalies have also been described from India in the meantime, which are associated with the Deccanic volcanism .

In 1999, Graup described structures from the ejected suevite for the first time, which prove that large amounts of carbonate melts formed during the impact. The Malm limestone of the impact area acted as a carbonate source. With this knowledge it was also possible to prove that the suevite contained considerable amounts of sedimentary rocks, which meant a reinterpretation of the formation mechanism. In recent years at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry , he was involved in the discovery of further high-pressure modifications in suevite that were formed during the Ries event.

literature

  1. G. Graup: Das Kristallin im Nördlinger Ries: Petrographic composition and ejection mechanism of the crystalline debris, structure of the crystalline subsoil and relationships with the Moldanubic , Enke-Copythek, 1978.
  2. D. Stöffler, G. Graup, M. Abadian, MR Dence: Interpretation of ejecta formations at the Apollo 14 and 16 sites by a comparative analysis of experimental, terrestrial, and lunar craters , in Lunar Science Conference, 5th, Houston, Tex ., March 18-22, 1974.
  3. G. Graup: Terrestrial chondrules, glass spherules and accretionary lapilli from the suevite, Ries crater, Germany , in Earth Planet. Sci. Lett ., Vol. 55, Amsterdam, 1981.
  4. G. Graup, P. Horn, H. Koehler & D. Müller-Sohnius: Source material for moldavites and bentonites. In science. Vol. 67, Berlin, 1981.
  5. ^ G. Graup, B. Spettel, D. Herm, KF Weidlich: Mineralogy and phase-chemistry of an Ir-enriched pre-K / T layer from the Lattengebirge, Bavarian Alps, and significance for the KTB problem , in Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. , Vol. 95, Amsterdam, 1989.
  6. ^ G. Graup: Carbonate-silicate liquid immiscibility upon impact melting: Ries Crater, Germany , in Meteorit. Planet. Sci. , Vol. 34, Lawrence, Kansas, 1999.

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