[meteorite-list] Charles Lee Pillmore, Geologist, Dies At 73

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 10:29:52 2004
Message-ID: <200309080129.SAA08183_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.trib.com/AP/wire_detail.php?wire_num=191539

Pillmore, geologist, dies at 73
Associated Press
September 7, 2003

DENVER (AP) - Charles Lee Pillmore, whose discovery of a Tyrannosaurus
rex track has helped paleontologists better understand the dinosaur, has
died.

Pillmore died Aug. 22 of prostate cancer at the age of 73. A memorial
service was scheduled for Saturday in Golden.

Pillmore was a geologist for the U.S. Geological Survey when he
discovered the track in 1983. It was named ''Tyrannosaurus pillmorei,''
in his honor.

The print helped paleontologists understand more about how that foot
could support a Tyrannosaurus rex's weight - up to 6 tons - and height
of 60 feet. It also helped establish the range of the dinosaur.

Pillmore also identified a layer of thin white clay in the Raton basin
that marked the abrupt end of many pollen species, with concentrations
of cosmic elements, including iridium, up to 7,000 times higher than in
the underlying layer.

His documentation helped bolster the theory that a large asteroid
collision led to the abrupt extinction of dinosaurs and other species.

The late scientist Gene Shoemaker named a newly discovered asteroid in
his honor: Pillmore 4368.

Survivors include wife Arlene Pillmore of Lakewood; daughter Kathy
Pillmore Schindler of Centennial; son Roy Pillmore of Raton, N.M.; and
seven grandchildren.

His daughter Karen Pillmore Bow died of breast cancer in 2001.

Memorial donations can be sent to the Charles Pillmore Memorial Fund
of the Colorado Scientific Society, P.O. Box 150495, Lakewood, CO 80215.
Received on Sun 07 Sep 2003 09:29:20 PM PDT