Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Dinosaurs are the biggest creatures to have ever walked on land, dominating Earth for over 130 million years. But how could such extraordinary creatures have simply vanished in the blink of a geological eye? For decades, we've assumed these prehistoric megafauna – a staple of our childhoods and Hollywood movies – went extinct for one simple reason: the asteroid that hit Earth was so unimaginably large that it changed everything in one single blow. But now, thanks to new research, an even more intriguing idea has emerged: size alone doesn't explain what happened.
The real reason the impact was so devastating may have been its angle. Had the asteroid arrived a little steeper, the outcome might have been different. A little shallower, different again. And for life on Earth at the time, predominantly dinosaurs on land, marine creatures in the sea and pterosaurs in the air, it appears to have struck at almost the worst possible angle imaginable, launching vast quantities of rock, dust and climate-altering gases high into the atmosphere and triggering one of the greatest mass extinctions in Earth's history.
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MORE FROM NEW SCIENTIST
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🌐 Website: newscientist.com
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About New Scientist:
New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human.
00:00 Introduction
02:30 The Mystery Before The Asteroid
10:05 This Asteroid Changed Everything
20:13 The World After Dinosaurs
23:24 Creating The Amazon
27:56 The Asteroid Was Just The Beginning
New Scientist
newscientist.com
#palaeontology #dinosaur #dinosaurextinction #prehistoriclife #jurassicworld #science
Dinosaurs are the biggest creatures to have ever walked on land, dominating Earth for over 130 million years. But how could such extraordinary creatures have simply vanished in the blink of a geological eye? For decades, we've assumed these prehistoric megafauna – a staple of our childhoods and Hollywood movies – went extinct for one simple reason: the asteroid that hit Earth was so unimaginably large that it changed everything in one single blow. But now, thanks to new research, an even more intriguing idea has emerged: size alone doesn't explain what happened.
The real reason the impact was so devastating may have been its angle. Had the asteroid arrived a little steeper, the outcome might have been different. A little shallower, different again. And for life on Earth at the time, predominantly dinosaurs on land, marine creatures in the sea and pterosaurs in the air, it appears to have struck at almost the worst possible angle imaginable, launching vast quantities of rock, dust and climate-altering gases high into the atmosphere and triggering one of the greatest mass extinctions in Earth's history.
Learn more ➤ youtu.be/kX5YWH4CEB4
❤️ Love New Scientist? For a specially discounted New Scientist digital subscription, go to bit.ly/3OFhwvL
⭐️ We have a podcast, too: Subscribe to @TheWorldTheUniverseAndUs
🛍️ Check out our shop for the smartest gifts - shop.newscientist.com
MORE FROM NEW SCIENTIST
─────────────────────────────
🌐 Website: newscientist.com
📸 Instagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTA
📘 Facebook: bit.ly/NSYTFB
🐦 Twitter: bit.ly/NSYTTW
📈 LinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN
About New Scientist:
New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human.
00:00 Introduction
02:30 The Mystery Before The Asteroid
10:05 This Asteroid Changed Everything
20:13 The World After Dinosaurs
23:24 Creating The Amazon
27:56 The Asteroid Was Just The Beginning
New Scientist
newscientist.com
#palaeontology #dinosaur #dinosaurextinction #prehistoriclife #jurassicworld #science
