Expert: Ralph Salier - 5/5/2006

Question
Dear Dr. Ralf Salier   

I am very pleased by their answers, I didn't want to burden you in no way, but truly I need some questions which can answer me, you are very willing person their answers they have been again very good and positive thank you for it, there are some how many and serious black holes with those topics that interest me a lot, I really wanted it is possible to satiate it almost completely, every time you  responds me I learn but it has more than enough that but there are things that I need to know but thoroughly if it is possible among these they are for the time being according to that responded previously by you:

- was it but big or but small to the mini age of ice of Tambora and of Krakatoa?  
 
- As for the Quetzalcoatlus they says in this it paginates of web http://www.pigeon.psy.tufts.edu/avc/husband/avc5vpth.htm that were possibly gliders that is to say that waited a breeze to be able to what specifies maybe to fly, it is that the calculations made by the scientists with regard to their weight and their wings and possibly muscular mass, inserts of their tendons, don't correspond to that can raise flight for herself.  
 
- By chance they have observed that type of minerals or metal are in the fossils they can be in China, African of the north, the west of the American south, as before said.  
 
- I wanted to know if you can to tell me since I don't belong to English's language a lot that which I use a translator as help, where I could find information on plants it forms size of the leaves, size of their trunks, if they know but or less the color that they had and all information on those plants, also the craters which you mention that they are in the ocean I pacify distance, graphics, etc.  
and Tectonic Plates of the World by that moment, how the word and continents they said was by that time  

- Thank you


Answer
Hi Kamil,

The translation software you are using is not very good.  From some languages it is very difficult to get a good translation.  What is your native language?

The mini ice ages caused by Tamora and Krakatoa lasted about 10 years.  This is well documented.  During these mini ice ages, the crops failed in the Northern Latitudes due to freezing weather and snow even in June and July (normally summer) and in Europe and New York, the rivers and canals remained frozen all year long.  It was so cold that many people died of exposure and hunger from failed crops.

Many of the large "flying dinosaurs" were actually gliders including the Pteradactyl and the Quetzalquatalis.  They needed very strong winds to hold them aloft  and to take off.  

In the clays which surround some of the fossils of the KT boundry the metal iridium is quite common and because it is very rare on Earth and very unique to this event, these fossils are associated with the KT event.  There are other fossil beds where it is not observed but this may be because of the way this material "filtered" out of the atmosphere.  

Most plants are green due to photosynthisis.  But not all.  Unfortunately, we are unable to determine the color of plants and can only make assumptions based on similar species living today.  Fossil plant material is found in many places and you can look them up on line by using one of the search engines like www.google.com or www.dogpile.com or www.altavista.com.  Put in "plant fossils" and then read the various articles that come up.   You can also find information on the K-T crater in Mexico by putting in "K-T Crater Mexico" in the search field.  There is a lot of information on Plate Techtonics on the internet as well and using these search engines you can find this informaion.  Your can find information about Plate Techtonics by using these words or also "circle of fire".

You can also try continental drift or gondwanaland as key words.

I am more then happy to provide assistance.  If you can give me a little more information about where you are located and if you have access to the National Geographic Magazine, I can pin point issues which may be of interest to you.