The asteroid that broke the dinosaur’s back

(Images by NASA/JPL-Caltech)

It takes a village to raise a child, and a whole host of events to destroy a dinosaur.

According to a study published by the National Academy of Sciences, dinosaurs were going extinct “at least 40 million years before the Chicuxlub asteroid landed in Mexico.”  Simply put, more were dying than were being born.  Such mathematics weakened them long before the final blow.

Scientists aren’t sure why this subtraction reaction occurred, but they do have their theories.  What with ancient global cooling, crumbling continents and “prolonged volcanic activity,” it’s a wonder that dinosaurs survived as long as they did.

Add to the mix “competition by mammals,” and you’ve got yourself a recipe for dinosaur disaster. By the time that asteroid hit, most were ready to exchange their hulking bodies for a bit of dinosaur heaven.

Resources

http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-dinosaur-decline-before-asteroid-20160418-story.html 

Copyright April 26, 2016 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved