Mass extinctions: The dinosaur files

By Zayyan Variawa
Aim: My aim is to choose the most suitable
hypothesis on how dinosaurs became
extinct and give strong evidence to support
my chosen hypothesis.
Hypothesis: The hypothesis I chose is ‘The
Extraterrestrial Impact Theory’.

Literature Study:
There are many theories or hypotheses on
how dinosaurs became extinct but there is
one which is most widely accepted and that
is the extraterrestrial impact theory which
states that a meteor or comet collided with
the Earth causing a huge dust cloud to
cover the Earth and in turn stopped the
Sun’s rays from reaching the Earth causing
the Earth’s temperature to drop below
freezing points. Although this theory has
not been proved there is evidence to
suggest that it has happened. Walter and
Luiz Alvares and their co-workers found the
evidence for this collision during a study of
some Cretaceous clay from northern Italy.
To their surprise, they found that the clay
was rich in the element iridium. Iridium is
rare on earth but is more common in
extraterrestrial bodies such as meteorites
and comets. After further studies, the
Alvares’ found the iridium only in a narrow
layer. To their amazement, this iridium
layer almost exactly matches the
Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. This led
them to suggest that a large
extraterrestrial body had hit the earth,
which caused the extinction of dinosaurs in
the Cretaceous. The bulk of the evidence
now suggests that a bolide 5 to
15 kilometers (3 to 9 mi) wide hit in the
vicinity of the Yucatán Peninsula, creating
the approximately 180 km (110 mi)
Chicxulub Crater and triggering the mass
extinction. Scientists are not certain
whether dinosaurs were thriving or
declining before the impact event. Some
scientists propose that the meteorite
caused a long and unnatural drop in Earth's
atmospheric temperature, while others
claim that it would have instead created an
unusual heat wave. They go on to say that
the dust cloud could have also been cause
by the explosion of Tambora, a volcano in

Indonesia.
The Chicxulub Crater at the tip of the Yucatán Peninsula; the impact that formed this
crater may have caused the dinosaur extinction.

Discussion:
During my research I found that among the three main
hypotheses the one I chose is the most accepted and
although none of these hypotheses can be proved there is
strong evidence to support them.
Conclusion:
I have come to the conclusion that I cannot give you
evidence to prove my chosen hypothesis but I can give you
evidence such as the Chicxulub Crater at the tip of the
Yucatán Peninsula or the Alvares’ study of some
Cretaceous clay from northern Italy which is strong
evidence and that exists and could have been caused by the
comet which caused the extinction of the dinosaurs.

Bibliography:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinosaur#Impact_event(www.w
ikipedia.com)
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?
qid=20081123184800AAzQ6Kh(www.yahoo.com)
http://animals.howstuffworks.com/dinosaurs/dinosaur-
extinction5.htm(www.howstuffworks.com)