Research Says 130-Million-Year Dinosaur Reign Ended After Asteroid Hit at Near-Worst Angle
Updated
Updated · New Scientist · Jul 16
Research Says 130-Million-Year Dinosaur Reign Ended After Asteroid Hit at Near-Worst Angle
3 articles · Updated · New Scientist · Jul 16
Summary
New research argues the dinosaur extinction was driven less by the asteroid’s size than by the angle of impact, which may have made the collision unusually destructive.
That near-worst trajectory appears to have blasted huge amounts of rock, dust and climate-altering gases high into the atmosphere, sharply worsening the global aftermath.
The study suggests a steeper or shallower strike could have changed the outcome for life on Earth, instead of triggering one of the planet’s greatest mass extinctions.
Dinosaurs had dominated land ecosystems for more than 130 million years before the impact also devastated marine species and pterosaurs.