Scientists have argued over the cause of extinction of the ancient dinosaurs for decades on end. On one side, there was the argumentation of the volcanic eruptions and on the other it was an impact with an asteroid. Some even suggested that both of these events combined led to the extinction of the great reptiles. Regardless of what it was, about 66 million years ago, all nonbird dinosaurs perished.
The Data
Some new evidence and data on the geology and the habitats of dinosaurs has just appeared in the scientific community. This, combined with some simulations on the climate and ecology, seem to indicate that it was the impact with a large asteroid that made the dinosaurs extinct. This impact has probably caused a winter that lasted decades, wiping out entire habitats and making survival virtually impossible for the enormous reptiles. This information was made public in an edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which was published on 29 June.
The Unexpected Hero
This was not exactly expected by the proponents of the volcano theory, but it would appear that the Deccan Traps, which are located in present-day India, have ameliorated the negative effects that the decades-long winter had on the dinosaurs. They have warmed the planet a lot quicker than it would have normally taken, giving mammals room to develop, according to scientists.
The Experts’ View
Alexander Farnsworth, a paleoclimatologist affiliated with the University of Bristol, located in England, has made a statement explaining that this theory is wildly different from that of the Deccan volcanism extinction, which might have actually been the hero of the day for dinosaurs. He added that this study is just one more study in a heap of them, all of them indicating that it was the impact with the asteroid, not the volcano eruptions, that caused the dinosaurs to perish.