A mega tsunami that is believed to have created a global mass-extinction event which also killed-off the dinosaurs has been simulated by a team of international experts, including members from NOAA. The team representing different academic institutions and government agencies, including NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Lab and Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Lab, combined numerical modeling and analysis of geological records to recreate the global impact of the tsunami generated by the Chixulub asteroid impact roughly 66 million years ago.
Once the asteroid struck Earth near the area where Chicxulub, Mexico is, a massive crater was created and buried underneath the Yucatan Peninsula. The large asteroid is believed to have been about 6 miles in diameter. The resulting crater is estimated to be 110 miles in diameter and 12 miles deep.
Scientists believe the impact ultimately wiped out nearly all the dinosaurs and roughly three-quarters of the planet’s plant and animal species. The massive impact also triggered a mega tsunami with mile-high waves. Recent historical tsunamis pale in comparison with this globally catastrophic event, thought to be 30,000 times larger than any recorded events.
