T. Rex and the Crater of Doom chronicles the discovery of the Chicxulub Crater, which is currently believed to be the impact site that is responsible for the mass extinction that hit the dinosaurs and other life 65 million years ago. As a young geologist, Dr. Walter Alvarez spent time in Gubbio, Italy studying the deep sea sediments found in the limestone formations there and looking at plankton populations in this formation. Alvarez and others had noted a massive decline in plankton populations in the thin clay layer that separated the late Cretaceous from the Tertiary Period, which is known as the KT Boundary. The question seemed simple enough: what happened at the KT boundary that caused the huge die-off of plankton and was it related to the late Cretaceous mass extinction? Alvarez has dedicated most of his career investigating this question and the asteroid/comet impact theory that best fits the available evidence.
If I had no work-related interruptions, I could have finished this book in one sitting. The book is very readable and anyone who remembers most of their high school science will be able to follow it.
If I had no work-related interruptions, I could have finished this book in one sitting. The book is very readable and anyone who remembers most of their high school science will be able to follow it.