The current scientific community believes that the dinosaurs became extinct due to a meteorite impact about 66 million years ago. New research finds that although the smoke from this impact briefly cooled the Earth, the impact introduced a large amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, causing the Earth's climate to experience warming for about 100,000 years after the brief cooling.
Researchers from the University of Missouri in the United States and their colleagues in Tunisia published a report in the new issue of the American "Science" magazine, saying that by analyzing the oxygen isotope content in fish remains and fossils, they inferred that the ocean water temperature increased by about 5 degrees Celsius after the meteorite impact, and continued It took about 100,000 years before it fell back.
The fossils, which include fish bones, teeth and scales, come from the northwestern region of Tunisia. They are spread over several meters of rock formations, and from them can be inferred about 250,000 years of geological history, during which the meteorite impact occurred.
There are many isotopes of oxygen. The most abundant ones on earth are oxygen 16 and some oxygen 18. Climate warming will affect the relative proportion of the two in seawater, and this change will be reflected in marine organisms. Analysis shows that after the meteorite impact, the ratio of oxygen 18 to oxygen 16 in seawater dropped by about 1%, which means that the water temperature increased by about 5 degrees Celsius.
Existing theories suggest that meteorite impacts can trigger wildfires that burn vegetation and cause carbonates in the Earth's crust to decompose and volatilize, causing large amounts of carbon dioxide to be released into the atmosphere. In the months to decades after the impact, soot blocked out sunlight and cooled the climate, leading to mass extinctions of life. After the dust settles, the greenhouse effect of carbon dioxide begins to work, warming the climate.
Previous studies have confirmed that the climate briefly cooled after the meteorite impact, but there was a lack of data support for the warming process. The new research provides evidence for related theories and helps to gain a deeper understanding of the impact of this impact on Earth's climate and ecosystems.
animal tags： meteorites dinosaurs extinction fossils ecology
you may also like
Dinosaurs are ancient creatures that ruled the earth for millions of years. Their origin, evolution and extinction are one of the research hotspots in the fields of paleontology and evolutionary biology. Here's a detailed look at the origin, evolution, and extinction of dinosaurs:...
Audiences who have watched the Disney animated blockbuster "Dinosaurs" must still remember the two ferocious carnivorous dinosaurs in it. They moved stealthily, walking through the stone forest, tracking the weak herbivorous dinosaurs. The shot of it appearing in the storm is really scary. Th...
Visitors to Titanosaurus Patago at Britain's Natural History Museum will be able to see the dinosaur's skeleton, the first time it has been put on display in Europe. Weight: 57 tons Length: 37.5 meters Not only was the Patago tita...
Whenever people talk about the largest animals on land, dinosaurs usually come to mind. We can imagine what it would be like for humans and underwater animals in front of dinosaurs. There are also different types of dinosaurs. For example, there are many types of pterosau...
As a large animal family, dinosaurs have ruled the world for more than 100 million years. However, as far as the dinosaur family is concerned, not all different species co-existed. Some species only appeared in the Triassic, some only lived in the Jurassic, and some species only appeared in t...
1. Yellow River Dragon 120 million years ~ 115 million years ago The type species of Yellow River dragon, Liujiaxia Yellow River dragon, was found in Lintao, Gansu Province. The fossil is incomplete and weighs 20 tons. In 2006, more than 30 dinosaur fossil sites...
This hypothesis about the cause of the extinction of the dinosaurs believes that the culprit of the catastrophe at the end of the Cretaceous was not an asteroid but a comet. Some scientists believe that the sun has a companion star that rotates around it. Every 20 to 30 million years, this co...
So far, the largest dinosaur we have discovered is Seismosaurus, which was 39 to 52 meters long! Height can reach 18 meters! ! The weight reaches 130 tons! ! ! In other words, if 2 to 3 seismic dragons stand together head to tail, they can line up from one gate of the football field to anothe...
Email: jsset#163.com (change # to @) Please indicate your purpose of visit! Guangdong ICP No. 2022053326 XML| map| Chinese
