The Chicxulub crater, left behind by the impact, contains elemental traces that suggest the origins of the notorious projectile.
, such as elevated levels of the element iridium, in a thin layer of rock found in multiple countries around the globe , are helping to create a forensic profile of the killer asteroid.
Geochemist Mario Fischer-Gödde of the University of Cologne in Germany and colleagues measured five isotopes, or forms, of ruthenium in the KPg rock layers, as well as inRuthenium, like iridium, is a platinum-group element, rare in Earth’s crust but abundant in asteroids and other space rocks. However, the relative abundance of ruthenium isotopes varies among space objects depending on where they originate.
The ruthenium signatures in the KPg rocks were indistinguishable from one another, tying them all to the same event, the team found. And that event was definitely extraterrestrial,Rock layers around the world contain geochemical fingerprints of the asteroid impact 66 million years ago. Here, the tip of a rock hammer points to a thin, whitish rock layer containing elevated levels of iridium in an outcrop north of Drumheller in Alberta, Canada.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
We just learned where the asteroid that ended dinosaurs came fromGeological clues suggest that the space rock that created Chicxulub crater was a carbonaceous chondrite meteorite.
Read more »
Dinosaur-killing asteroid likely came from deep space beyond JupiterAndrew Paul is Popular Science's staff writer covering tech news. Previously, he was a regular contributor to The A.V. Club and Input, and has had recent work featured by Rolling Stone, Fangoria, GQ, Slate, NBC, as well as McSweeney's Internet Tendency. He lives outside Indianapolis.
Read more »
Dinosaur extinction caused by 6-mile-wide asteroid that came from beyond JupiterThe suspected 6-mile-wide (10-kilometer) asteroid was a rare carbonaceous asteroid that killed the giant dinosaurs and countless other ancient creatures.
Read more »
Mars and Jupiter pair up this week in a celestial dance unseen from Earth in yearsThe encounter is an out-of-this-world example of right place, right time — as Mars zips past Jupiter, Earth will be in the perfect spot to see the two planets look as if they are within arm's reach.
Read more »
Mars and Jupiter pair up this week in a celestial dance unseen from Earth in yearsThe encounter is an out-of-this-world example of right place, right time — as Mars zips past Jupiter, Earth will be in the perfect spot to see the two planets look as if they are within arm's reach.
Read more »
Mars and Jupiter pair up this week in a celestial dance unseen from Earth in yearsThe encounter is an out-of-this-world example of right place, right time — as Mars zips past Jupiter, Earth will be in the perfect spot to see the two planets look as if they are within arm's reach.
Read more »