The Asteroid that Wiped Out the Dinosaurs

Enormous tsunamis, hundreds of meters high, swept across coastlines, wiping out ecosystems. Wildfires, sparked by the impact's heat and fueled by debris, spread across large areas, intensifying the devastation. Meanwhile, a thick cloud of debris and vaporized rock filled the atmosphere, blocking sunlight for months or even years. This "impact winter" cast Earth into darkness, disrupting photosynthesis and causing global temperatures to drop sharply.

In the wake of this ecological turbulence, plant life withered, food chains collapsed, and entire species struggled to survive. The extinction of dinosaurs left ecological niches vacant, allowing mammals and other smaller creatures to thrive and eventually evolve into the diverse array of species we see today.