Arctic Ocean Craters Not From Meteor Strikes

HUNDREDS OF HUGH CRATERS HAVE BEEN FOUND IN THE ARCTIC OCEAN, BUT THE CAUSE WAS NOT SOME LONG AGO METEOR BOMBARDMENT

Illustration Courtesy National Science Foundation

 The bad news is that the high Arctic Ocean region is burping massive amounts of methane many such "burps" are powerful enough to create meteor like craters on the sea floor. You probably wouldn't want to be around on something the size of an offshore oil service vessel for the related sea surface effects when one of these bad boys goes off. This is a natural phenomenon that occurs whenever the permafrost that over lays thinly crusted areas of major methane deposits weakens which it does on a cyclical basis. Ancient and more modern versions have been studied in land areas of the High Arctic region. Other areas like the sea floor and coastal plains of Texas and Louisiana also occasionally burp methane but without the amazing crater like results. In the semi tropical climes of Texas and Louisiana there is no permafrost, so the strength over the over burden holding the methane in is much more stable than in areas with permafrost.  Also much of the final overburden of top and sub soils are very permeable so gases such as methane tend to escape in a diffused manner, outside of Arctic and subarctic regions natural methane escape is rarely an explosive event. Pressures build up where the final holding element in the over burden is variable. Geological overburden is rarely variable on anything like a seasonal basis unless there is seismic activity or strip mining. Unfortunately the climate change / global warming / crowd is spewing the usual propaganda over the internet in response to papers that are starting to appear about the newly discovered craters  in the Arctic Ocean. We hesitate to link you these articles without this forewarning. As you read the various accounts many by climate alarmists keep in mind that these "hundreds of craters are newly discovered, Not much in dating has taken place before the alarmists started writing. We think any alarm is premature unless all of these craters are dated to within a few years of each other. We are fairly certain such a sea floor disturbance would generate "freak wave" effects. With all of the Russian oil exploration activity in the area that should have been noticed and reported. We think it more probable than not that the craters are widely varying in age and if ever properly dated would reflect the normal weather cycles with some years more active than others and unusually cold years probably free of such explosive sub-sea activity. 

 Below you will find some links to published articles on these craters. Try not to view them with the alarm the climate alarmist are always trying to induce with incomplete , inaccurate, or fanciful "science". On the other hand if you you start to hear of unusual unexplained losses of Russian oil exploration craft in the High Arctic this summer, it is OK to be afraid, But that still doesn't prove either climate change or man caused climate change. Keep in mind the amount of human presence in the High arctic, particularly by the Russians is unprecedented in history. There has been a lot going on in the High Arctic for centuries without scientific observation. Here are some links. Take everything with a "grain of salt".

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/hundreds-of-huge-craters-discovered-in-the-arctic-ocean/ar-BBBMTfk?li=BBnb4R7&ocid=wispr

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/7/16/1314501/-Mysterious-Siberian-Crater-Found-at-End-of-the-World-May-Portend-Methane-Climate-Catastrophe