Researchers say they've found evidence that an asteroid or comet exploded over Kershaw County thousands of years ago, causing huge changes to life in that area.
© Christopher Moore
ELGIN, S.C. — A lot of attention has been generated in the South Carolina town of Elgin following the earthquakes there in recent months. But Elgin is also making headlines for a stunning discovery
made by a former University of South Carolina archaeologist, Christopher Moore, and his team of researchers.
Moore and his team of researchers believe they've found signs supporting an extinction theory called the Younger-Dryas Impact Hypothesis. And they've found evidence that appears to shows an asteroid or comet exploded over Kershaw County thousands of years ago, causing huge changes to life in that area.."I wanted to come to White Pond because I knew the mud and the sediments in the pond had a record of climate over the last at least 20 or 30,000 years," Moore explained.
The Younger-Dryas Impact Hypothesis states an asteroid or comet hit the Earth nearly 13,000 years ago, splintering into smaller parts over the skies of several continents. The result led to a decline in animal and human populations.
Evidence in support of the proposition, Moore said, was found at the bottom of White Pond in Elgin in recent years."Well when you dig down in certain areas you're going back in time," Moore said. "So you start at the surface and you have the most recent time periods, and as you go down, it's like a time capsule, and you're going further back in time."
Teams excavated in three or four feet long block units--individual segments where the Earth is peeled back--across parts of the White Pond area. Moore said at the deepest part of the block they've found artifacts that are 12,000 years old.
