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Life recovered quickly in the place where the asteroid that exterminated the dinosaurs about 66 million years ago fell in the Gulf of Mexico, highlights a study published in Nature Communications.
That falling asteroid exterminated all non-avian dinosaurs and approximately 70 percent of all marine species, however, the crater it left behind was literally a hotbed of life, enriching the overlying ocean for at least 700,000 years, research highlights.
According to the authors, marine life recovered quickly in the impact zone due to a hydrothermal system created by the asteroid impact, which may have helped marine life flourish at the impact site by generating and circulating nutrients in the crater environment.
Following the asteroid impact, the Gulf of Mexico is experiencing a very different ecological recovery process than the global ocean, as ongoing hydrothermal activity has created a unique marine environment, explained the study's lead author, Honami Sato, an assistant professor at Kyushu University in Japan.
The study's co-actor, Sean Gulick, a research professor at the Jackson School of Geosciences at the University of Texas at Austin, co-led a scientific drilling expedition to the impact site, called Chicxulub, in 2016, where samples of the crater core were recovered.
Previous research had already determined that life returned to the crater site within a matter of years. The new study presents evidence that a hydrothermal system created by the asteroid impact and its melt sheet buried beneath the seafloor likely influenced its recovery and sustenance for hundreds of thousands of years.
"We are increasingly understanding the importance of impact-generated hydrothermal systems for life," Gulick said. "This article represents a breakthrough that demonstrates the potential of an impact to affect the overlying ocean for hundreds of thousands of years."
The research focuses on a chemical element called osmium. A particular proportion of osmium is associated with asteroid materials. The researchers found evidence that osmium from the asteroid, buried kilometers beneath the impact crater, was continuously released into the Gulf of Mexico due to underwater hydrothermal activity.
In other words, as warm water moved beneath the seafloor and rose to the surface, so did traces of the asteroid.
As the hydrothermal fluid cooled over time, traces of the asteroid rose from the water and precipitated in sediments. The researchers analyzed the sediment, which was brought to the surface in core samples, and used it to determine the extent of the hydrothermal system and the duration of osmium enrichment.
After the disappearance of the dinosaurs, the Chicxulub impact is well known for its link to the mass extinction. Gulick said this research is important because it shows that this impact can also be a catalyst for life. (Text and Photo: PL)
