April 25, 2016
A new study suggests that volcanic eruptions did not lead to the extinction of the dinosaurs, and also demonstrates that Earth’s oceans are capable of absorbing large amounts of carbon dioxide — provided it is released gradually over an extremely long time.
Scientists have long argued over the cause of the Cretaceous-Palaeogene extinction event, during which three-quarters of all plant and animal species, including the dinosaurs, went extinct roughly 65 million years ago. Most researchers favor the idea that a catastrophic, sudden mechanism such as an asteroid hit triggered the mass die-off, while others say a gradual rise in CO2 emissions from volcanoes in what is now India may have been the cause.