Relief Forms on the Surface of Cosmic Spherules as Evidence for Their Origin

Abstract

The study of the composition of sedimentary formations raises the problem of identifying extraterrestrial matter, in particular, distinguishing cosmic spherules from technogenic and volcanogenic ones. Based on a study of a collection of 482 bulk spherules separated from ferromanganese crusts of the Pacific Ocean floor, it is proposed to use relief forms on spherule surfaces as an additional feature of their origin. The paper describes in detail such relief forms arising as cosmic particles pass through the upper layers of Earth’s atmosphere, and isolation and separation of the Fe–Ni cores from the spherules. The presence of a round hemispherical cavity on the flattened side of the spherule, a depression with concentric circles, or a “button” structure, as the presence of a Fe–Ni core, is sufficient but not necessary evidence for the cosmic origin of a spherule.