AI Article Synopsis
- Temporal correlation between continental flood basalt eruptions and mass extinctions suggests a causal link, where gases from eruptions may harm the environment and lead to extinctions.
- Researchers examined the Deccan Traps flood basalt province in connection with the K-Pg extinction event 66 million years ago, utilizing uranium-lead zircon geochronology to pinpoint eruption rates.
- Results indicated that significant eruption pulses occurred both before and after the extinction event, with one major eruptive phase beginning tens of thousands of years prior to the Chicxulub impact, supporting models that view these simultaneous catastrophic events as contributors to environmental decline and extinction.
Article Abstract
Temporal correlation between some continental flood basalt eruptions and mass extinctions has been proposed to indicate causality, with eruptive volatile release driving environmental degradation and extinction. We tested this model for the Deccan Traps flood basalt province, which, along with the Chicxulub bolide impact, is implicated in the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) extinction approximately 66 million years ago. We estimated Deccan eruption rates with uranium-lead (U-Pb) zircon geochronology and resolved four high-volume eruptive periods. According to this model, maximum eruption rates occurred before and after the K-Pg extinction, with one such pulse initiating tens of thousands of years prior to both the bolide impact and extinction. These findings support extinction models that incorporate both catastrophic events as drivers of environmental deterioration associated with the K-Pg extinction and its aftermath.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.aau2422 | DOI Listing |
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