It is estimated that 66 million years ago, a massive rock slammed into the Earth, which would be known as the cataclysm that wiped dinosaurs off the face of the planet.
Now known as the Chicxulub Crater which is situated just off the coast of Mexico, it is buried under approximately 600m of mud beneath the sea.
A new planned expedition has been planned by an international team of scientists, taking a drilling platform to the site in an attempt to reach the crater directly.
The ‘peak ring’ will be a focus of the team, the region at the centre of the crater which formed when it rebounded and collapsed.
The expedition has begun and is expected to take 2 months to complete.
“We want to know where the rocks that make up this peak ring come from,” said Professor Joanna Morgan from Imperial College London. “Are they from the lower, mid or upper crust ?”
“Knowing that will help us understand how large craters are formed, and that’s important for us to be able to say what was the total impact energy, and what was the total volume of rock that was excavated and put into the Earth’s stratosphere to cause the environmental damage.”
