Abstract
Despite recent searches for anomalous iridium(Ir) concentrations at the Permian/Triassic boundary (P/Tr) of marine sediments1–3, no Ir above a level of 0.5 p.p.b. (parts per 109) has been found. Detailed event–stratigraphical research has revealed a comparatively high platinum-group enrichment and geochemical anomalies of trace elements in the P/Tr boundary clay at Meishan, Changxing County, Zhejiang Province, China4. We report here an investigation of Ir and trace-element abundances in the P/Tr boundary layer of Shangsi section, Guangyuan County, Sichuan Province (Fig. 1). An Ir value of 2 p.p.b. detected in the boundary layer supports the occurrence of an extraterrestrial event at the end of the Permian.
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Dao-Yi, X., Shu-Lan, M., Zhi-Fang, C. et al. Abundance variation of iridium and trace elements at the Permian/Triassic boundary at Shangsi in China. Nature 314, 154–156 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/314154a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/314154a0
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