Dinosaurs died out due to fire 66 million years ago.

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the theories regarding the extinction of dinosaurs approximately 66 million years ago, specifically focusing on the role of fire and the Chicxulub impact. Participants explore various hypotheses, including the global firestorm theory, volcanic activity, and other speculative ideas related to the extinction event.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants reference Robertson et al. 2013, suggesting that the evidence for global fires may have been misinterpreted due to debris from the Chicxulub impact.
  • There is a debate over the exact timing of the extinction event, with some asserting it was 65 million years ago while others argue for 66 million years ago, citing different sources.
  • Participants discuss the idea that the reentry of ejecta from the Chicxulub impact could have caused a global infrared pulse, potentially igniting widespread fires.
  • Some mention that the global firestorm theory has been around for at least 20 years and is considered a natural consequence of a significant impact event.
  • Volcanism, particularly the formation of the Deccan Traps, is presented as an alternative theory that could explain the extinction, with discussions about its timing relative to the impact event.
  • Several humorous and speculative theories about dinosaur extinction are shared, including ideas about caterpillar infestations and social behaviors among dinosaurs.
  • There are questions about the antipodal effects of the Chicxulub impact and its potential connection to volcanic activity in the Deccan Traps.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express multiple competing views regarding the causes of dinosaur extinction, with no consensus reached on the primary theory. The discussion includes both serious scientific hypotheses and lighthearted speculative ideas.

Contextual Notes

Some claims about the timing and effects of the Chicxulub impact and the Deccan Traps are based on varying interpretations of evidence, and the discussion reflects uncertainty regarding the relationships between these events.

Andre
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That sounds pretty obvious. But it wasn't because of the interpretation of evidence. The charcoal / soot required as evidence was not available.

In a nutshell.

Robertson et al 2013 explain that it was merely a misinterpretation. The charcoal is simply dilluted by the debris from the Chicxulub impact. They state that when the ejecta reentered the atmosphere it, it caused intense radiation that set most if not all vegatation on at fire on a global scale
 
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It's 65, not 66 mya
 
chiropter said:
It's 65, not 66 mya

Actually: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-21379024

The article suggests that it really is 66Mya with remarkable accuracy (+/- 11kya).


Due to a paywall I can't access the article mentioned in the OP but from the abstract:

" Preliminary modeling showed that the reentry of ejecta would have caused a global infrared (IR) pulse sufficient to ignite global fires within a few hours of the Chicxulub impact."

Is this referring to a previous paper? Is the global firestorm a well established idea?
 
This theory goes back at least 20 years.

http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/37/12/1147.short

I also saw a documentary of the global fires theory years ago.
 
JesseC said:
Actually: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-21379024

The article suggests that it really is 66Mya with remarkable accuracy (+/- 11kya).


Due to a paywall I can't access the article mentioned in the OP but from the abstract:

" Preliminary modeling showed that the reentry of ejecta would have caused a global infrared (IR) pulse sufficient to ignite global fires within a few hours of the Chicxulub impact."

Is this referring to a previous paper? Is the global firestorm a well established idea?

I think the global firestorm is a pretty well established idea, a natural consequence of a bolide that big. I suppose the angle and speed of impact are also important, and given the evidence for global fires they are revising those estimates to account for the fires, and vice versa.

I downloaded the Robertson et al. 2013 article and they do not mention 66 million years ago.

Thanks for the link to the Science (BBC) paper- it's very recent and a nice discussion of the context of the K-T boundary extinctions. http://www.sciencemag.org/content/339/6120/684.full.pdf
 
Those poor kids who were riding the dinosaurs at the time... I hope they got away :frown:
 
the real reason dinosaurs became extinct:
209795_f520.jpg
 
rbj said:
the real reason dinosaurs became extinct:


209795_f520.jpg
:smile:
 
  • #10
rbj said:
the real reason dinosaurs became extinct:


209795_f520.jpg

Got some flame, bro? Woah, you dropped it, stamp that out man! &^%$#!
 
  • #13
chiropter said:
...

Thanks for the link to the Science (BBC) paper- it's very recent and a nice discussion of the context of the K-T boundary extinctions. http://www.sciencemag.org/content/339/6120/684.full.pdf

unfortunately, that site also requires a signup subscription too :(

Dave
 
  • #14
capcom1983 said:
http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/communication/couch/possible.html fun theories why dinosaurs died out

hahhaha

Impact of an asteroid, perhaps the most widely accepted theory at the moment. It is suggested that a meteorite hit the Earth at the end of the Cretaceous, causing huge quantities of material to be thrown into the atmosphere, reducing the light, decreasing atmospheric temperature and preventing plants from photosynthesising. Without food herbivores would be unable to survive, and consequently the carnivore dinosaurs would no food to eat, hence their extinction.

I wonder if that was before or after the caterpillar infestation ? ...

There has also been a suggestion that caterpillars ate all the plants, leaving nothing for the herbivores to munch.

and this one ...

There was a decrease in sexual activity, and not enough dinosaurs were born.

leads me to my personal favourite theory ... that all the female dinosaurs across ALL species revolted against the males by saying " not tonite dear, I have a headache"

Dave

PS ... further contemplation leads me to 2 other theories concerning a decrease in sexual activity...

Referring to the previously posted cartoon...

theory 1 ... that the smoking caused impotence and or ...
theory 2 ... they were really smoking whacky baccy and that was more fun than procreation

Sorry guys ... just couldn't resist :)
all in fun ( life is too short to take it seriously all the time :) )
 
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  • #15
Volcanism.
There is evidence that the formation of the Deccan Traps in India, took place at the same time as the dinosaur extinction. Excessive volcanic activity can have significant effects on the climate. The Deccan Traps erupted on a very large scale, and therefore could have had a major impact on the atmosphere at that time. This theory is the main alternative to a meteorite impact, and it can explain many of the associated observations. This includes the shocked quartz and the glassy spherules, see The Impact theory for details of these observations

This one is actually interesting ...
Not so much as an alternative theory, but that the Chicxulub impact caused this huge outflow of lava. I vaguely remember this beingh discussed during my university geology studies. I can't remember the validity of the idea or what the conclusions were.
One could imagine that the major Chicxulub impact caused a huge pulse through the Earth and that pulse resulted in the Deccan Traps eruptions ( their location being close to the opposite side of the earth, where the pulse energy would come to a focus).

Dave
 
  • #16
Were the Deccan Traps at the antipodal point of the Chicxulub impact? Based on the post above I would assume so. Is there a reference for this.

The kind of junk-science stuff I found, non-peer reviewed discussions.:

solvingthemajorextinctions[dot]com appears to be a pet project site.

However this is not my field.
 
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  • #18
We have discussed the antipodal effect here. Apparantly, the dating of the Deccan Traps does not support it
 

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