New Study Reveals Forest Fires Sparked by the Catastrophic Event 66 Million Years Ago
The meteorite impact that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs also caused wildfires across vast regions of Earth, scientists have found. Striking the Yucatan Peninsula in present-day Mexico, the six-mile-wide meteorite, which occurred at the end of the Cretaceous Period 66 million years ago, ignited forest fires thousands of kilometers away. This event, coupled with other environmental disasters, resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs and the loss of nearly three-quarters of Earth’s species.
