New insights into the Chicxulub impact and dinosaur extinction
Seventy-five percent of life on Earth was obliterated after the asteroid impact at Chicxulub, which took place 66 million years ago. Until now, scientists have proposed various theories about the cause of this extinction, including the demise of the dinosaurs. However, new research is emerging.
Scientists have most frequently referenced the theory concerning the drastic and prolonged cooling of Earth's climate. Following the asteroid impact, it was believed that a large amount of sulphur was released into the atmosphere, adversely affecting temperature.
What really killed the dinosaurs?
It now seems, however, that these assumptions may have been exaggerated. The latest research is based on the analysis of drill cores taken from the asteroid impact site at Chicxulub. Scientists estimated from this analysis how much sulphur was actually released into the atmosphere.
The quantity is staggering—approximately 67 billion metric tonnes of sulphur. Although this is indeed an astronomical amount, it is five times less than previously thought.
The Earth got colder, but not so much that life couldn't survive
It appears that 25% of Earth's species might have survived because the climate cooling wasn't as severe. The smaller amount of sulphur compared to previous assumptions means that the "cold and dark" atmosphere did not last as long. The return to normal climatic conditions occurred more swiftly than previously believed.
Nevertheless, the release of sulphur into the atmosphere due to the asteroid impact did contribute to the mass extinction of species. This occurred because the impact happened in an area where the rocks were rich in sulphates. In the latest research, scientists employed a method of sulphur isotope analysis, comparing the data with the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary layer. The results of the study may also prove useful to other scientists studying phenomena related to mass extinctions from 66 million years ago.
The new discovery also indicates that life on Earth had a greater chance of survival than previously assumed, potentially influencing the interpretation of other mass extinction events.
