The impact of an asteroid or comet that wiped out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago also created a crater that is now buried beneath the Gulf of Mexico. This crater is about 110 miles wide and 6 miles deep, and it is filled with broken rocks that have been heated to such high temperatures that they have become plastic and flowed like liquid.
This discovery, made by researchers from the University of Texas at Austin, is important because it provides new insights into how large impacts affect the Earth's crust. The researchers found that the broken rocks in the crater were able to flow because they were heated to temperatures of up to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This heat caused the rocks to melt and form a liquid that was able to flow like water.
The researchers also found that the broken rocks were able to flow for long distances. They were able to track the flow of the rocks for up to 6 miles from the center of the crater. This means that the impact of the asteroid or comet that created the crater was much more powerful than previously thought.
The findings of this study have important implications for understanding the effects of large impacts on the Earth's environment. The researchers believe that the flow of broken rocks could have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs by blocking out the sun and causing a global winter. The study also has implications for understanding the formation of other craters on the Earth and other planets.
Additional information:
* The impact of the asteroid or comet that created the Chicxulub crater is thought to have been one of the most powerful events in Earth's history. It is estimated that the impact released energy equivalent to 100 million hydrogen bombs.
* The impact of the asteroid or comet caused the immediate extinction of about 75% of all plant and animal species on Earth.
* The impact also caused the Earth's climate to change drastically. The Earth experienced a global winter that lasted for several years.
* The Chicxulub crater is still visible today. It is located beneath the Gulf of Mexico, about 100 miles off the coast of Mexico.
