The Impact of Silica Dust on the Extinction of Dinosaurs 66 Million Years Ago

Jakarta –

As we have heard, dinosaurs experienced extinction because they were triggered by an asteroid hitting the Earth. This event occurred 66 million years ago.

In fact, a powerful asteroid impact caused extreme winter at that time and the loss of around 75 percent of life on Earth.

It is known that as a result of the asteroid impact, a lot of fine silica dust was scattered. Scientists estimate that dust played a role in the extinction of the dinosaurs.

“Fine silica dust from the rock fragments of the Chicxulub asteroid most likely drove a mass extinction event that disrupted photosynthetic activity on land and ocean,” said Cem Berk Senel, a researcher at the Royal Observatory of Belgium, as reported by Newsweek.

Previously, researchers believed that sulfur and soot from forest fires resulting from the asteroid impact were the main causes of global extreme winters. But now dust is the main cause.

Researchers found more of the dust from locations in North Dakota. It is possible that the dust remained in the atmosphere for 15 years and caused the Earth to cool by 15 degrees Celsius.

Silica Dust Impacts Solar Radiation

This dust is known to have an impact on solar radiation which can stop photosynthesis for two years after the event.

“For the first time we have produced a paleoclimate model that takes into account the true size of the dust recovered from North Dakota,” said Philippe Claeys, a geologist and professor at the Free University of Brussels.

“The very fine particles that we detected have a very long residence time in the atmosphere, namely up to 15 years and longer than components such as sulfur. So, the silica-rich dust is produced from deeper layers in the atmosphere. Rocks also play a role in causing climate “which was cold and stopped photosynthesis, which resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs,” he added.

Disrupting Photosynthetic Activities on Land and Sea

The volume of dust produced from the collision was very large, reaching 2000 tons. According to Claeys, this is the most likely element to disrupt photosynthetic activity on land and sea for two years.

“The Earth cooled significantly due to the combined influence of sulfur, soot and dust. After five years the influence of sulfur became less significant, but dust and fire soot remained active for about 15 years,” said Claeys.

“Silica dust is shown in our paper as the most efficient barrier to photosynthesis. Silica dust makes the atmosphere opaque to sunlight, thus inhibiting the photosynthesis process of plants. So during that time there is no food for herbivores and carnivores. We think it takes two years for photosynthesis can recover,” he added.

Claeys also believes that the extinction of the dinosaurs amazed scientists and it is still unclear how the process of energy being released and transferred to the biosphere as a result of the impact of the asteroid.

Watch the video “4 Dinosaur Diseases That Humans Also Experience”

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2023-11-06 12:30:00
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