14 DAY TRIAL // In a recent paper in the journal Science, researchers with the Massachussets Institute of Technology argue that, according to evidence at hand, it could be that a massive volcanic eruption in present-day India contributed to the dinosaurs' demise.
More precisely, they say that this eruption, together with an asteroid impact that occurred some 66 million years ago, transformed ancient natural ecosystems on our planet to such an extent that all dinosaurs eventually perished.
The eruption was a catastrophe through and through
In their study in the journal Science, the researchers explain that, having taken the time to study date rocks collected from a region in west-central India known as the Deccan Traps, they found evidence of a massive volcanic eruption that played out in ancient times.
The eruption in question began some 250,000 years before the asteroid impact blamed for the fact that dinosaurs no longer populate Earth and went on for an impressive 500,000 years following the planet's collision with the celestial body.
The Massachussets Institute of Technology scientists estimate that, during this time, lava emerging from deep inside Earth came to cover about 1.5 million square kilometers (approximately 0.6 million square miles), Phys Org informs.
The researchers argue that, apart from obliterating countless natural ecosystems, this volcanic eruption poisoned Earth's atmosphere and even global oceans. This is because volcanic eruptions see the release of not just lava, but also all sorts of toxic compounds.
“Ultimately what that can do is lead to ocean acidification, killing a significant portion of plankton—the base of the food chain. If you wipe them out, then you'd have catastrophic effects,” Massachussets Institute of Technology scientist Michael Eddy explains.
The asteroid delivered the final blow
When our planet got hit by an asteroid some 250,000 years after the commencement of this volcanic eruption, massive amounts of dust got kicked into the air and soon enough engulfed the planet. It is believed that, as a result, some three quarters of the species that then inhabited Earth perished.
It's safe to assume that, had the volcanic eruption and the asteroid impact not happened at about the same time, the dinosaurs might have managed to survive. However, taken together, these events, whose occurrence is backed up by geological evidence, ended up reshaping the Earth's biovidersity.
“The asteroid impact may have caused the extinction. But perhaps its effect was enhanced because things were softened up a bit by the eruption of these volcanoes. Perhaps the end of the dinosaurs was caused by a one-two punch,” says specialist Sam Bowring.
