Is the Younger Dryas associated with an extinction event?

Asked by: Rene Kielholz

The Younger Dryas (YD) impact hypothesis is a recent theory that suggests that a cometary or meteoritic body or bodies hit and/or exploded over North America 12,900 years ago, causing the YD climate episode, extinction of Pleistocene megafauna, demise of the Clovis archeological culture, and a range of other effects.

What caused the Younger Dryas extinction?

The current theory is that the Younger Dryas was caused by significant reduction or shutdown of the North Atlantic “Conveyor” – which circulates warm tropical waters northward – as the consequence of deglaciation in North America and a sudden influx of fresh water from Lake Agassiz.

What animals went extinct during the Younger Dryas?

Fossil evidence suggest the disappearances were very sudden. In addition to the extinction of the mammoths and the disappearance of horses in North America other species, including bison, deer, and moose suffered massive population losses (Fig. 5).

Was the Younger Dryas caused by a comet?

The hypothesis proposes that the airburst or impact of a comet ∼12,850 years ago caused the ensuing ∼1200-year-long Younger Dryas (YD) cool period and contributed to the extinction of the Pleistocene megafauna in the Western Hemisphere and the disappearance of the Clovis Paleo-Indian culture.

What is the Younger Dryas and why is it important?

The Younger Dryas is one of the most well-known examples of abrupt change. About 14,500 years ago, Earth’s climate began to shift from a cold glacial world to a warmer interglacial state. Partway through this transition, temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere suddenly returned to near-glacial conditions.

Was the Younger Dryas triggered by a flood?

The Younger Dryas—the last major cold episode on Earth—is generally considered to have been triggered by a meltwater flood into the North Atlantic.

What was the most likely cause of the extinction 11000 years ago?

Hunted. Human activity may have caused giant sloths and other large mammals in North America to go extinct 11,000 years ago. Around 11,000 years ago, saber tooth cats, woolly mammoths, giant ground sloths, and almost every other large mammal in North America went extinct.

What was the most likely cause of the extinction 11 000 years ago?

However, new findings from Faith indicate that the extinction is best characterized as a sudden event that took place between 13.8 and 11.4 thousand years ago. Faith’s findings support the idea that this mass extinction was due to human overkill, comet impact or other rapid events rather than a slow attrition.

What animal has become extinct in the last 100 years?

Among the animals that have become extinct in the last 100 years is the Caspian Tiger. It is a magnificent tiger that used to inhabit the lands of eastern Turkey, the Caspian Sea, and northern Iran and is now extinct. A variety knows the tiger of names, including the Persian tiger and Turan tiger, among others.

Where did the Younger Dryas meteor hit?

Pilauco Bajo is the southernmost site where evidence of the Younger Dryas impacts has been reported. This has been interpreted as evidence that a strewn field from the Younger Dryas impact event may have affected at least 30% of Earth’s radius.

When was the end of the last ice age?

The glacial periods lasted longer than the interglacial periods. The last glacial period began about 100,000 years ago and lasted until 25,000 years ago.

Did a meteor cause an ice age?

A giant asteroid crash caused an ancient ice age on Earth, but also gave life a boost. Earth endured an ancient ice age 466 million years ago when a giant asteroid broke apart and sent waves of dust toward our planet over the next 2 million years, according to a new study.

Is the earth still in an ice age?

Like all the others, the most recent ice age brought a series of glacial advances and retreats. In fact, we are technically still in an ice age. We’re just living out our lives during an interglacial.

How long did the Younger Dryas last?

The Younger Dryas (YD) (nominally ∼12,900 to 11,600 y before present [B.P.], where present represents 1950 C.E.) was the most recent of these events (2) that has received widespread attention among the scientific community (3).

What is the Younger Dryas and when did it occur?

The Younger Dryas is the last major abrupt climate change event of the last deglaciation occurring ~12 900–11 700 years ago. Large portions of the Northern Hemisphere cooled and much of the Southern Hemisphere warmed during the event in a bipolar seesaw pattern.

When did the Younger Dryas end?

The Younger Dryas is the last major abrupt climate change event of the last deglaciation occurring ~12 900–11 700 years ago. Large portions of the Northern Hemisphere cooled and much of the Southern Hemisphere warmed during the event in a bipolar seesaw pattern.

What happened 12000 years ago?

12,000 years ago: Volcanic eruptions in the Virunga Mountains blocked Lake Kivu outflow into Lake Edward and the Nile system, diverting the water to Lake Tanganyika. Nile’s total length is shortened and Lake Tanganyika’s surface is increased. 12,000 years ago: Earliest dates suggested for the domestication of the goat.

When was the Younger Dryas impact?

The Younger Dryas (YD) impact hypothesis is a recent theory that suggests that a cometary or meteoritic body or bodies hit and/or exploded over North America 12,900 years ago, causing the YD climate episode, extinction of Pleistocene megafauna, demise of the Clovis archeological culture, and a range of other effects.

What ended the last ice age?

New University of Melbourne research has revealed that ice ages over the last million years ended when the tilt angle of the Earth’s axis was approaching higher values.

How long it will be until the next ice age?

The next ice age almost certainly will reach its peak in about 80,000 years, but debate persists about how soon it will begin, with the latest theory being that the human influence on the atmosphere may substantially delay the transition. This is no mere intellectual exercise.

Will there be another ice age?

The researchers found that the next ice age is likely to occur in no less than 50 000 years, However, add the effect of man-made global warming, and this number can be increased to 100 000 years. Perhaps then, humanity won’t be around long enough to experience the Earth’s next ice age.