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An Expanding Cloud of Interstellar Gas
[DB 1507 (31); OAB 33] This claim focuses on a paper by V.A. Hughes and D. Routledge (Astronomical Journal, v.77, pp.210-214 (April 1972)) announcing the discovery of a ring of gas expanding from a center near the Sun. According to the observations of Hughes and Routledge, the gas cloud is most likely the result of a type-III supernova occuring about 65 million years ago. The authors make no mention of, or claim regarding, the age of the Earth or the Universe, although they do speculate that radiation from this supernova may have had something to do with the mass extinctions, including that of the dinosaurs, that occurred about 65 Myr ago (more recently, however, convincing evidence has been discovered showing that an impact, not radiation, was responsible for that extinction). Despite the absence of any such claim by its authors, both DB and OAB cite this paper, without comment, as limiting the age of the Earth to 60 million years. However, there is absolutely no reason to believe that the Earth must be younger than the supernova that created this cloud of gas. The supernova would have been several hundred light-years from the Earth, and despite Hughes and Routledge's speculation that it may have had some effect on terrestrial life, it would not necessarily have had any effect on the Earth at all.

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