New research suggests the Chicxulub impact crater hosted a hydrothermal system that persisted for at least 8 million years after the asteroid strike, far longer than the previously estimated 2 million years. The system's hot water gushing into freezing ocean depths may have served as a refuge and hotbed for microorganisms struggling to survive the cataclysm.
Background
The Chicxulub impact 66 million years ago is widely credited with causing the mass extinction that wiped out non-avian dinosaurs. Recent deep-drilling projects in the Yucatán Peninsula have revealed new details about the long-term geological and biological consequences of the collision.
- Source
- Ars Technica
- Published
- Oct 1, 2026 at 05:54 AM
- Score
- 7.0 / 10