Re: where would a meteorite have to strike to generate global changes

In fact, the basic question is not WHERE would a meteorite have
to strike; more important is WHAT is the meteorite's mass
and velocity when it strikes the Earth.

Of course, if the strike is at the ocean, it could cause a
tsunami and related effects; if the strike is at poles, it may
not cause the effects that would be observed on land, described
below.

Global changes caused by such event would include: landscape
changes (at the site of the strike, it would cause rock fragmentation,
melting, and so on); large emission of dust into the atmosphere,
what could cause decrease of the local and perhaps global temperature,
by blocking of the incoming solar radiation -> this could begin
a mass extinction, at least locally; an earthquake would occur at the
site, but would not be so strong it could affect large areas far from
the strike's site.

For any additional explanation, fell free to contact me

Eder C. Molina
eder@iag.usp.br