An asteroid crash that took place about 65 million years ago is blamed for supposedly wiping out all the dinosaurs on Earth. And now the scientists are very close to solve the age-old mystery behind this dino-killing asteroid crash.
According to the reports, the scientists have planned to carry drilling of 5,000 feet (or 1,500 meters) below the Chicxulub crater’s surface in Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, in order to get up a giant core. The drilling project is scheduled to commence in spring next year.
All though the scientists have known about the site of the supposed event of space-rock and believed on the theory for decades, this would be for the first time when offshore core will be taken out from near the crater’s center.
The study showed that the age-old known asteroid, which is believed to have omitted the existence of the dinosaurs millions of years ago, is expected to have not led to global firestorms that are thought to have ravaged the Earth.
The new fossil evidence is hinting towards the possibility of a sixth event of mass extinction in the history of the Earth.
Sean Gulick, study co-author from The University of Texas at Austin Institute for Geophysics, said, “The Chicxulub impact crater has been a remarkable scientific opportunity for the 20 years since it’s been discovered.”
The scientists keenly observed the whole 125-mile-wide Chicxulub crater and identified a spot along its peak ring, which is a ring of mountain-like structures located around the crater’s center.
According to the scientists, the collision between a high-speed space-rock and the planet’s surface causes the crust to act like a liquid temporarily. Firstly, a so-called transient crater is formed and then the center rebounds, splashes, first upward and then outward.
Even though this is just a theory till now, the researchers are hoping that this drilling project is likely to uncover some crucial evidences to support this widely believed theory.