Catastrophic failure of Earth's global systems led to the extinction of the dinosaurs – we may yet go the same way
Friday, March 29, 2019 - 09:00
in Paleontology & Archaeology
"Why did the dinosaurs die out?" The consensus, among palaeontologists and dinosaur crazy seven-year-olds alike, seems to be that about 66m years ago a 10km diameter asteroid crashed into what is now Central America. It raised up a cloud of dust and ash that spread across the upper atmosphere, blocking out the sun, cooling the Earth and destroying the ozone layer that protects life from harmful cosmic radiation.