US, WASHINGTON (ORDO NEWS) — Specialists from the University of Southampton, which is located in the UK, have established why there was a mass extinction on Earth 360 million years ago. The catastrophe, which caused the death of most creatures and plants, arose as a result of the depletion of the ozone layer.
Scientists added that in total our planet has already experienced several mass extinctions. For example, about 252 million years ago, ecosystems were destroyed by volcanic eruptions that are in Siberia. After that, dinosaurs soon appeared, which were destroyed by the impact of the asteroid 66 million years ago and caused the end of the era of these amazing giants.
The extinction that occurred at the very end of the Devonian period was triggered by causes of natural origin – fluctuations in the climate of the planet. When the ice age ended, the atmosphere began to rapidly heat up. Because of this, “ozone collapse” occurred in the upper layers.
The earth remained almost completely without a protective shell, and therefore strong ultraviolet radiation penetrated freely through the atmosphere. This caused the death of many plants, fish and the first four-legged.
Similar conclusions were drawn after experts examined the spores from rock samples in East Greenland, where once there was a large lake. The study showed that spores have spikes in the country of shape, which can occur as a reaction to a huge amount of ultraviolet radiation. Additional studies of the materials received only confirmed the guess of the experts.
Due to the depletion of the ozone layer, many unique species of animals and plants have died. But nevertheless, it was enough to ensure that soon life on the planet began to develop again.
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