Asteroid that eradicated dinosaurs not a one-off, say scientists
GuardianSEP 20 2024
The newly studied Nadir crater, located off the coast of Guinea in West Africa, measures nearly five miles across and was created by an asteroid estimated to be 450-500 meters wide.
Using 3D seismic imaging, scientists mapped the crater rim and geological scars 300 meters beneath the ocean floor, providing unprecedented detail of a marine impact crater.
The asteroid that created the Nadir crater is believed to have struck Earth at approximately 72,000 kilometers per hour, coming from 20-40 degrees to the northeast.
The Nadir crater, while significant, pales in comparison to the Chicxulub impact. Its effects were likely localized and may not have contributed significantly to global climate change or mass extinction. The focus should remain on the larger, more catastrophic Chicxulub event when discussing the end-Cretaceous extinction.