Title: New Research Sheds Light on the Devastating Effects of the Chicxulub Impact
Subtitle: Scientists simulate the conditions following the impact of the Chicxulub asteroid to better understand its catastrophic consequences
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Byline: [Author Name]
In a groundbreaking study, scientists have conducted a series of experiments to simulate the conditions that occurred after the impact of the Chicxulub asteroid, shedding new light on the devastating effects of this cataclysmic event. The Chicxulub impact, which occurred approximately 66 million years ago, is widely believed to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs and had a profound impact on life on Earth.
The research, which focused on the formation of shockwaves and the expanding cloud of vaporized material, provides crucial insights into the speed and magnitude of the atmospheric disturbances that followed the impact. The collision of the approximately 8 trillion-ton asteroid, with a volume of around 2,600 km3, at a speed of approximately 20 km/s, resulted in an explosion equivalent to about 300 million megatons of TNT and created the Chicxulub crater, measuring 180 to 240 kilometers in diameter. This event stands as one of the largest catastrophes in the history of life on Earth and likely represents the largest collision between Earth and an extraterrestrial body in the past several hundred million years.
The study confirms that no organism within hundreds of kilometers could have survived the immediate aftermath of the impact. However, it also explores the accompanying phenomena of the impact and identifies the first harbingers of the apocalypse. Aside from the blinding light caused by the asteroid’s entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, the most rapid form of destruction was the impact itself and the subsequent shockwave, which rapidly propagated in all directions from the impact site. But what was the actual speed of this shockwave? According to Charles Frankel’s book “The End of the Dinosaurs,” published in 1999, this colossal atmospheric disturbance initiated its expansion at a speed close to that of the impacting body, approximately 20 km/s (72,000 km/h).
However, within a few minutes, the speed significantly decreased as the expanding ring of air encountered larger atmospheric masses. Within approximately 10 minutes after impact, the speed of this deadly ”wind” dropped below 1,000 km/h (approximately the speed of sound), with its outer edge located approximately 500 kilometers from the impact site. After about an hour, the distance covered by this “ring of destruction” reached 1,000 kilometers, with the air expansion speed still surpassing the strongest hurricanes recorded by humans. Within this range, practically all larger, unprotected animals were killed, and the majority of surface vegetation was devastated. This was just one of the many manifestations of destruction, accompanied by seismic waves, tektite showers, lethal infrared radiation, impact megatsunamis, and more. According to a scientific paper published in 1997, the area devastated by these effects extended from 900 to 1,800 kilometers from the impact site.
In their book “Chicxulub: The Impact and Tsunami,” published in 2017, authors David Shonting and Cathy Ezrailson describe the conditions within 400 kilometers of the impact site. They state that after approximately 2 minutes, an extremely powerful earthquake would have been felt, followed by two devastating atmospheric pressure waves after 20 to 25 minutes. The first wave would have been an incredibly strong aerodynamic shock, followed by extremely powerful tornado-like vortices, reaching speeds of around 350 m/s (1,260 km/h) just a few seconds later.
Surviving such devastation would have been nearly impossible, even in an underground nuclear shelter, especially near the impact site and considering the prospect of the impact’s long-lasting devastating effects. Estimates of the intensity of these events vary significantly across the literature, as illustrated in Douglas Henderson’s beautifully illustrated book “Asteroid Impact” from 2000. The author suggests that the expanding cloud of vaporized material had a speed of approximately 18 miles per second, or about 29 km/s (assuming an incorrect assumption that the impact occurred at a speed of 60,000 miles per hour, or 96,600 km/h).
To gain a better understanding of the likely appearance and changes in these atmospheric effects following the impact, a controlled laboratory experiment was conducted in the early 2010s. The experiment involved laser ablation of carbonate rock, obtained directly from one of the drill cores from the Chicxulub crater. The experiment was conducted under simulated Late Cretaceous atmospheric conditions, with a composition of 0.16% CO2, 30% O2, and 69.84% N2, at a pressure of 1 bar and a temperature of 25°C.
By high-speed imaging the shockwave propagation and the expanding cloud of vaporized material, scientists gained valuable insights into the likely appearance and transformations of these atmospheric effects following the actual impact. This research provides a significant contribution to our understanding of the devastating consequences of the Chicxulub impact and its profound impact on life on Earth.
As scientists continue to unravel the mysteries of this catastrophic event, further research will undoubtedly shed more light on the events that unfolded after the Chicxulub impact, helping us better understand the Earth’s history and the resilience of life in the face of such cataclysmic events.text-link” href=”https://dinosaurusblog.com/2021/03/29/jak-velky-je-krater-chicxulub/” rel=”noopener”>oblaku také rychlosti, které byly naměřeny. Výsledky experimentu ukázaly, že rychlost expandujícího oblaku se pohybovala kolem 10 km/s (36 000 km/h), což je nižší hodnota než byla dříve odhadována. Rázová vlna se pak šířila rychlostí přibližně 3 km/s (10 800 km/h).
Tyto nové poznatky jsou důležité pro lepší porozumění dopadu planetky na Zemi a jeho následkům. Přesnější informace o rychlostech a chování rázové vlny a expandujícího oblaku mohou pomoci při modelování a simulacích podobných událostí a při předpovídání jejich dopadu na život na naší planetě.
Studie byla publikována v časopise Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets a představuje další krok vpřed v našem poznání o katastrofických událostech, které ovlivnily vývoj života na Zemi.
). Tyto vlny by způsobily masivní destrukci ve svém okolí a zcela zničily veškeré životní formy v dosahu.
Dalším průvodním jevem dopadu bylo pršení tektitů, což jsou malé skleněné kuličky vytvořené při vypařování a následném kondenzování materiálu při impaktu. Tyto tektity byly rozptýleny po celém světě a jsou důkazem obrovské síly a rozsahu katastrofy.
Další smrtící jev, který následoval po dopadu, byla infračervená radiace. Při explozi se uvolnilo obrovské množství energie, která se šířila ve formě tepelného záření. Toto záření bylo schopné spálit a zničit veškerou vegetaci a živočichy v okolí.
A konečně, nejstrašlivějším jevem bylo impaktní megacunami. Dopad tělesa do oceánu vyvolal obrovskou vlnu, která se šířila po celém světě. Tato vlna byla schopná zaplavit pobřežní oblasti a zničit veškeré životní formy v dosahu.
Celkově lze říci, že dopad tělesa na Zemi před 66 miliony lety způsobil jednu z největších katastrof v historii planety. Zničil veškerý život v okolí dopadu a měl dalekosáhlé dopady na celý svět. Tato událost je důležitá nejen pro pochopení minulosti Země, ale také pro studium a prevenci budoucích impaktů.
What were the devastating consequences of the Chicxulub impact, as revealed by the recent study
New Study Provides Insights into the Catastrophic Effects of the Chicxulub Impact
Scientists have conducted groundbreaking research simulating the conditions that occurred after the Chicxulub asteroid impact, shedding new light on the devastating effects of this cataclysmic event. The Chicxulub impact, believed to have caused the extinction of dinosaurs, had a profound impact on life on Earth.
The study focused on the formation of shockwaves and the expanding cloud of vaporized material, offering crucial insights into the speed and magnitude of the atmospheric disturbances that followed the impact. The collision of an approximately 8 trillion-ton asteroid created an explosion equivalent to 300 million megatons of TNT and formed the Chicxulub crater, one of the largest catastrophes in Earth’s history.
The research confirms that no organism within hundreds of kilometers could have survived the immediate aftermath of the impact. However, it also explores the accompanying phenomena and the first signs of the apocalypse. The shockwave initiated its expansion at a speed close to that of the impacting body, rapidly propagating in all directions. Within a few minutes, the speed significantly decreased as the expanding ring of air encountered larger atmospheric masses.
The study provides insights into the devastating consequences of the impact, including seismic waves, tektite showers, lethal infrared radiation, impact megatsunamis, and more. The area devastated by these effects extended from 900 to 1,800 kilometers from the impact site.
Further research will continue to unravel the mysteries of this catastrophic event, shedding more light on the events that unfolded after the Chicxulub impact and our understanding of Earth’s history and the resilience of life.
