Why did 75% of life on Earth disappear after an asteroid crash?

Published:

24 dic 2021 13:57 GMT

One trial analyzed about 300 species belonging to the Cretaceous period, which were subjected to periods of artificial darkness in simulation.

A team of researchers from the United States conducted a study where a new hypothesis was proposed, which explains the reasons that contributed to the mass extinction. 75% of terrestrial organisms (including plants and non-bird dinosaurs) After making an asteroid impact 66 million years, In public Specialized Media Live Science.

The catastrophic event led to a complete darkness that lasted for about two years. This was due to the formation of clouds of rock dust emitted into the atmosphere at the time of the asteroid’s collision with the Earth’s surface, causing a total collapse of the ecosystem due to a temperature drop, which cooled the planet. For extreme speed.

The model proposed by the scientists indicates that the clouds were made of sulfuric acid, which caused acid rain around the world, resulting in a large number of wildfires. “The general thought now is that global wildfires would have been the main source of the ideal suit suspended in the upper atmosphere,” explained Peter Rubnerine, an ancient researcher at the California Academy of Sciences.

Roopnerine commented, “During the first days or weeks of the fire the suit concentration would have been high enough to prevent photosynthesis and reduce the amount of incoming sunlight.” The research team studied the long-term impact of this landscape dark period by recreating ecosystems that may have existed before the asteroid’s impact.

To this end, they used 300 species from the Cretaceous fossil and elemental landmass to form the Hell Creek (also known as the ‘Arroyo del Inferno’ in Spanish), which spans the states of Montana and Wyoming. ., North Dakota and South Dakota.

After a series of simulations by researchers, the group of these species were exposed to prolonged darkness for between 100 and 700 days. Fossil records show 73% of vertebrae are extinct As a result of the catastrophic event.

The period of darkness after the impact began quickly after a few weeks, Rubnerine said. Scientists have found that ecosystems can only be restored if the period of darkness lasts 150 days, But if it is extended 200 days, it will cause destruction The dominance of certain species and survivors causes severe damage to the ecosystem.

Illustrated image

When the interval of darkness lasted 700 days, Levels of destruction Increased from 65% to 81%. According to the simulation, this is the fate of the ‘Hell Stream’ species, which remained in complete darkness for two years after conditions around the world changed due to atmospheric flow and a strong variation in temperature levels.

Similarly, the study concluded that a group of organisms from Hell Creek formation survived in the absence of light. 700 days Took around 40 years to come back After that abnormality dissipated, Reported Scientists at the fall meeting of the American Geophysical Society (AGU).

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