What killed the Dinosaurs ?
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Dinosaur Eras and Eons (periods) |
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Dinosaurs |
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Dinosaurs Food Sources |
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| What killed the dinosaurs ? | ||||
What killed the dinosaurs:
As of 2010, a group of 41 geologists, paleontologists and other researchers finally concluded that a large asteroid wiped out the dinosaurs. The theory was first posited in 1980 but there was lots of speculation and other theories, such as disease, previous to this supposedly final theory.
As well as the impact of the asteroid, volcanic activity, possibly triggered by the impact of the asteroid, in many places, also contributed to the demise of the dinosaurs. The shock of the impact would have killed all creatures in the immediate area of the impact, but as well as that, lots of dust would have filled the skies and blocked out the sun, as well as poisoning the air, for thousands of miles around the impact site. The lack of sunlight would have prevented plants from growing, and therefore herbivores would have had less food, and would die off. As a result of this, the carnivorous dinosaurs would have had no herbivores to eat, so they too would suffer from starvation.
In 1980, Louis Alvarez and his son Walter published a paper blaming the dinosaur extinction 65 million years ago on an asteroid impact. The probable crater was later found at Chicxulub, Mexico, and the idea gained wide scientific acceptance.
This is what might happen, if a similar asteroid hit the Earth again: