Did Quark Matter Penetrate Earth in 1993?

AI Thread Summary
Two significant seismic events were recorded in 1993, with the first occurring on October 22, when an object entered the Earth near Antarctica and exited south of India, and the second on November 24, with an entry south of Australia and exit near Antarctica. These events were monitored at various stations in India, Australia, Bolivia, and Turkey. Despite initial interest, research into these events ceased in 1993 when the US Geological Survey stopped collecting data on "unassociated events." There has been no significant follow-up or new findings related to these occurrences, leading to speculation about their relevance. Some researchers suggested these could be linked to strange quark matter, but alternative interpretations, such as seismic activity from earthquakes, have also been proposed. The lack of detailed descriptions from monitoring stations has left many questions unanswered regarding the nature and impact of these events.
g33kski11z
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Article - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/2502755.stm I wasn't real sure where to post this (mods move if necessary)

The first event was recorded at seven monitoring stations in India, Australia, Bolivia and Turkey, and the second event was recorded at nine monitoring stations in Australia and Bolivia.

First event occurred on 22 October 1993, when, according to the researchers, something entered the Earth off Antarctica and left it south of India 0.73 of a second later.

The second occurred on 24 November 1993, when an object entered south of Australia and exited the Earth near Antarctica 0.15 of a second later.

Has anything come of this? Is it even relevant/accurate? The BBC doesn't seem to have a follow-up story or anything.
 
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Nothing..??
 
g33kski11z said:
Nothing..??
According to the article you posted, they stopped researching it back in 1993.

Unfortunately, scientists may not be able to find any more events that suggest the passage of strange quark matter through the Earth.

In 1993 the US Geological Survey stopped collecting data from "unassociated events."
 
g33kski11z said:
I understand that. I was just curious if anything was ever made of it, any follow up or anything like that..

so, would this be an anomaly? https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=58374 .. or more of a fluke?

Well they stopped researching it, so no, I'd say nothing came of it.

Anomaly? No. Fluke? No. The fact they took it no further seems to indicate there was nothing exciting enough about it to warrant further investigation.
 
what is quark matter?
 
"We can't prove that this was strange quark matter, but that is the only explanation that has been offered so far," Herrin says.

Ah 'twould that good science were so easy...
 
A little digging reveals an alternative explanation...

Anderson et al. (2003) interpret a set of unassociated seismic arrivals observed on 24 November 1993 as a line source, which they claim is consistent with the passage of a "strange quark nugget" through the Earth. In fact, these arrivals can be convincingly interpreted as an earthquake source on the Pacific-Antarctic ridge.

http://www.bssaonline.org/cgi/content/extract/94/6/2414
 
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What would quark matter do if it struck the Earth? And am I right in saying that a stable "nugget" would have to be incredibly dense (on the order of mountain sized masses per cubic centimetre?
 
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ryan_m_b said:
What would quark matter do if it struck the Earth? And am I right in saying that a stable "nugget" would have to be incredibly dense (on the order of mountain sized masses per cubic centimetre?

Yes, I wish the 'reporting stations' had been more detailed in their description of the 'event'. Just to say it happened leaves one a tad mystified. Did it take out someone's garbage shed? Activate some kind of monitor? Was it obvious without equipment?
 

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