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The meteorite that killed all the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago caused a mega-earthquake on impact. American researchers now suspect that the Earth shook for weeks or even months.
By our news editorsA huge amount of energy would have been released. In comparison, the most powerful earthquake in recent history – a magnitude of 9.0 near Sumatra – released an energy of around 20,000 atomic bombs. The meteorite impact generated about 50,000 times more energy than it did then, the researchers suspect.
Research director Hermann Bermúdez examined the soil and seabed at various locations. Also on Gorgonilla Island, about 3,000 kilometers from the spot in the Gulf of Mexico where the meteorite struck.
At the bottom of the ocean near the island, Bermúdez found traces of an earthquake on small droplets of glass. This is molten rock that flew over the planet as glass droplets when the meteorite hit.
“It took several months for this layer to form in the water near Gorgonilla Island. Yet these particles are already showing cracks and deformations that occur after an earthquake,” Bermúdez writes. This, he says, confirms that the Earth continued to shake long after the impact.
Bermúdez conducted research near Gorgonilla because a piece of seabed was barely touched by the huge tsunami that arose after the meteorite impact. Previous surveys have already shown that the wave was at least 1.5 kilometers high. Bermudez’s full investigation will be released on Sunday.
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