Was nuclear winter the reason for the disappearance of dinosaurs?

ArabiaWeather - For many decades, there have been differences in scientists' opinions regarding what could have been the reason behind the extinction of dinosaurs and other organisms on Earth about 66 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous period, also known as the " five waves of mass extinction. " The debate has intensified between some Scientists attributed the main cause to major volcanic eruptions. On the other hand, the hypothesis preferred by scientists was that an asteroid collided with Earth about 66 million years ago. However, recently scientists revealed a shocking surprise that confused the scientific community and those interested, as the research team led by the Royal Belgian Observatory confirmed that the asteroid debris It played a decisive role in the extinction of the dinosaurs, but it was not the direct cause of this extinction.

Nuclear winter

The report published by the British "Daily Mail" indicated that the dust resulting from the disintegration of rocks in the Earth's atmosphere blocked the sun's rays and hindered the photosynthesis process of plants. The amount of dust reached about 2,000 gigatons , which is 11 times more than the weight of Mount Everest , and remained in the atmosphere. Atmospheric conditions for up to 15 years , resulting in a global "nuclear winter."

As a result, plant growth stopped and herbivores (that feed on grass) starved, including some dinosaurs, which ultimately led to the extinction of 75% of living organisms on Earth.

The mystery of the extinction of dinosaurs continues despite the efforts of scientists

Despite scientists' continued efforts to solve the mystery of dinosaur extinction since the discovery of Chicxulub Crater in 1978 , the geological formation is still insufficient to conclude that the massive asteroid was enough to push the dinosaurs toward extinction.

The prevailing theory recently was that sulfur from asteroid impacts or smoke from global wildfires blotted out the sun, bringing the world a long, dark winter, killing all but the lucky few.

However, recent research based on particles found at an important fossil site confirms an earlier hypothesis, which is that dust emitted by the asteroid had a significant impact on winter.

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Sources:

alarabiya

aljazeera