Researchers Uncover a Fragment of the Asteroid That May Have Killed Off Dinosaurs
Paleontologists discovered a tiny fragment that may have been from the asteroid that hit Earth 66 million years ago and killed off the dinosaurs, as revealed in a new documentary Dinosaur Apocalypse. Found in the Tanis fossil site in North Dakota, the fragment was preserved in amber after landing in tree resin upon impact, enabling researchers to identify the chromium, nickel and other materials that suggest a cosmic origin. The research—which will be published in a peer-reviewed journal in the coming months—also uncovered an exceptionally preserved dinosaur leg from a thescelosaurus, believed to have died on the day the asteroid hit and a fossilized pterosaur egg, the first found in North America. The fossil records give paleontologists a detailed look at what happened on the extraordinary day, including where the asteroid came from and what exactly unfolded when it made impact. Learn more about at CNN.
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