Overview
- Timothy Burbery of Marshall University presented a reading that casts Satan as a colossal impactor that carves Hell and lifts Mount Purgatory.
- He argues the poem’s nine circles mirror the terraced rings seen in multi‑ring impact basins on worlds such as the Moon and Venus.
- The scenario is likened in scale to the Chicxulub event, with Satan compared to an elongated body like ‘Oumuamua and to the intact Hoba meteorite.
- He says Dante hints at physical ideas such as terminal velocity and deep crust penetration in describing the fall.
- Outlets report the work as a conference presentation at EGU 2026 that invites scrutiny across geology and literature rather than a peer‑reviewed conclusion.