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Astronomers at Harvard University in the United States believe they are one step closer to discovering where the space object that hit Earth 66 million years ago came from and caused a massive extinction of species, including dinosaurs, according to a study this week in the magazine Nature’s Scientific Reports
For decades Scientists have debated the origin of the asteroid that formed the crater upon impact on our planet Chicxulub, in present-day territory of Yucatán (Mexico), depression that stretches for more than 149 kilometers wide and 19 kilometers deep.
Through statistical analysis and gravity simulations, researchers Amir Siraj and Avi Loeb have proposed that the person responsible for the disaster could be a comet from the Oort cloud that flew too close to the sun.
These icy spheres at the edge of the solar system can be diverted from their course by the gravitational field exerted by Jupiter, they explain. “The solar system works like a pinball machine,” said Siraj.
When long-period comets approach the sun, the star’s immense tidal forces can break them into pieces of rock, increasing the chance that one of these fragments will hit Earth. The researchers say their work provides “a satisfactory explanation” that one of these objects may have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs.
The specialists also said the evidence found in Chicxulub crater suggests the rock was composed of carbonaceous chondrite. One of the theories suggests that the celestial body came from the main belt, between the orbit of Jupiter and Mars, but the presence of this type of chondrite is rare in these objects. But such material could be common in long-period comets, supporting the recent hypothesis.
“We should see small fragments coming to Earth from the Oort cloud more often,” Loeb said, adding that he hopes more long-period comet data and better statistics will validate his theory.
The authors believe that understanding what really happened is not only important in solving a mystery in Earth’s history, but can also be crucial if a similar event threatens the planet again.
(Reproduced from RT Español)