id stringlengths 1 5 | contents stringlengths 354 1.98k |
|---|---|
30800 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Related: More than 5,000 new species found in 'pristine' deep-sea wilderness. But they could soon be wiped out.
There's a lot of research focused on how we're going to manage mining, if it does go ahead. And there are some habitat types in the deep ocean that we don't need to do further research on, because we know they are so vulnerable. We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. |
30801 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Related: More than 5,000 new species found in 'pristine' deep-sea wilderness. But they could soon be wiped out.
There's a lot of research focused on how we're going to manage mining, if it does go ahead. And there are some habitat types in the deep ocean that we don't need to do further research on, because we know they are so vulnerable. We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. |
30802 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
But they could soon be wiped out.
There's a lot of research focused on how we're going to manage mining, if it does go ahead. And there are some habitat types in the deep ocean that we don't need to do further research on, because we know they are so vulnerable. We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea? |
30803 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
And there are some habitat types in the deep ocean that we don't need to do further research on, because we know they are so vulnerable. We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . |
30804 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
And there are some habitat types in the deep ocean that we don't need to do further research on, because we know they are so vulnerable. We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. |
30805 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
We know that we would risk species extinction at active hydrothermal vents, for example, because they're a tiny habitat globally — just 50 square kilometers [19 square miles] — with more than 400 animal species not found in any other habitat type. But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater. |
30806 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. |
30807 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
But I'm confident that we will see protection for active hydrothermal vents, because we scientists have been saying that for years.
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . |
30808 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Hydrothermal vents are some of the most vulnerable deep sea habitats and home to 400 animal species not found anywhere else. (Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. |
30809 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
(Image credit: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
SP: Deep sea mining is perhaps more manageable in terms of its impacts than other human activities. If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks. |
30810 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
If not mining, what is the biggest human threat to the deep sea?
JC: To my mind, it's climate change . And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. |
30811 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
And it affects the deep ocean in lots of different ways. The one that concerns me particularly is deoxygenation — the reduction in oxygen levels — because deep sea animals need oxygen and they get it from the seawater.
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. |
30812 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Oxygen is carried down by currents that form in the polar regions and sink and spread throughout the deep ocean. As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming. |
30813 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. |
30814 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
As a result of climate change, the ocean is getting warmer and that means it can't carry as much dissolved oxygen . When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you? |
30815 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
When water is warmer, the metabolism of things living in the water runs faster and they use up oxygen more quickly, so that makes the problem even worse. And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. |
30816 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. |
30817 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
And thirdly, we know that the currents carrying oxygen down to the deep ocean are weakening , because melting ice sheets are making the water fresher and blocking the formation of dense water than sinks.
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. |
30818 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Those currents take centuries to complete their journey, which means the changes we have already made are going to carry on being felt for centuries. The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. |
30819 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
The deep ocean is already on track to have 10% less oxygen overall globally than it did in preindustrial times by 2400. It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it. |
30820 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
It's hard to predict what the knock-on effects are going to be, but they are going to be widespread and they are coming.
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. |
30821 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
SP: You dedicate much of your time to communicating deep sea science with lay audiences. Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ? |
30822 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Why is that so important to you?
JC: I enjoy talking to people about the deep sea because it's not somewhere we think about every day. We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. |
30823 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
We can go out at night and if we look at the sky, we might wonder about what's going on up there. But you can't glance into the deep sea in the same way, so it has become a realm of myth and darkness. Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats. |
30824 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
Even the names of the deepest bits of the deep sea — the abyssal plains and the hadal zone — evoke that kind of underworld. It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. |
30825 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
It's nice to be able to shine a light on that for people and to highlight how our lives are connected to it.
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life. |
30826 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
The deep sea and the names we give some its features evoke "some kind of underworld," says Jon Copley. (Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life.
"Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know" is available in the U.K. |
30827 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
(Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life.
"Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know" is available in the U.K. to order on Amazon . |
30828 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
(Image credit: A. Martin UW Photography via Getty Images)
SP: Speaking of the sky, how does exploring the deep ocean inform the search for life outside our solar system ?
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life.
"Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know" is available in the U.K. to order on Amazon .
This interview has been condensed and lightly edited for length. |
30829 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life.
"Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know" is available in the U.K. to order on Amazon .
This interview has been condensed and lightly edited for length.
Deep sea creatures have evolved extreme strategies to cope with their environment. |
30830 | 'We know far more about the deep ocean than the moon or Mars,' says explorer Jon Copley
JC: Deep sea exploration has shown us that the range of conditions under which life can thrive is far greater than we imagined. The idea that chemosynthesis — where life is powered by a form of chemical energy instead of sunlight with photosynthesis — could sustain whole populations of animal species was impossible, until we discovered hydrothermal vents and other, similar habitats.
Deep sea vents also glow very faintly — too faintly for the human eye to see, but bright enough that microbes can use it as an energy source. Again, it expands our notion of what's possible in the cosmos, because you don't necessarily have to be that close to a bright star, potentially, to sustain life.
"Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know" is available in the U.K. to order on Amazon .
This interview has been condensed and lightly edited for length.
Deep sea creatures have evolved extreme strategies to cope with their environment. Read about the trials and tribulations of their sex lives in this excerpt from "Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know." |
30831 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Inostrancevia is a genus from the extinct group Theriodontia that appeared during the Middle Permian. (Image credit: Stocktrek Images/Getty Images)
The excerpt below is taken from "Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis" (Hachette Book Group, 2023), by Michael Mann. It looks at how climate change following the Cambrian explosion caused the biggest mass extinction on Earth — dooming the creatures set to dominate and set the stage for dinosaurs to rule.
The mechanisms that can freeze the planet, as was the case with Snowball Earth can also lead to inhospitably hot climates, when enough carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago. |
30832 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Inostrancevia is a genus from the extinct group Theriodontia that appeared during the Middle Permian. (Image credit: Stocktrek Images/Getty Images)
The excerpt below is taken from "Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis" (Hachette Book Group, 2023), by Michael Mann. It looks at how climate change following the Cambrian explosion caused the biggest mass extinction on Earth — dooming the creatures set to dominate and set the stage for dinosaurs to rule.
The mechanisms that can freeze the planet, as was the case with Snowball Earth can also lead to inhospitably hot climates, when enough carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago.
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? |
30833 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
(Image credit: Stocktrek Images/Getty Images)
The excerpt below is taken from "Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis" (Hachette Book Group, 2023), by Michael Mann. It looks at how climate change following the Cambrian explosion caused the biggest mass extinction on Earth — dooming the creatures set to dominate and set the stage for dinosaurs to rule.
The mechanisms that can freeze the planet, as was the case with Snowball Earth can also lead to inhospitably hot climates, when enough carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago.
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it. |
30834 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
It looks at how climate change following the Cambrian explosion caused the biggest mass extinction on Earth — dooming the creatures set to dominate and set the stage for dinosaurs to rule.
The mechanisms that can freeze the planet, as was the case with Snowball Earth can also lead to inhospitably hot climates, when enough carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago.
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it.
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. |
30835 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The mechanisms that can freeze the planet, as was the case with Snowball Earth can also lead to inhospitably hot climates, when enough carbon dioxide enters the atmosphere. Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago.
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it.
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago. |
30836 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Arguably the greatest extinction event of all time — called the Great Dying — appears to have resulted, at least in part, from a massive heat-inducing release of carbon into the atmosphere 250 million years ago.
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it.
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. |
30837 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Is this ancient event a possible analog for a sixth, human-caused, climate-change-driven mass extinction today? In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it.
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans. |
30838 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
In answering this question, we will at times work our way through some details of the science, but the payoff is that we will see not just that scientists are able to unravel such mysteries, but how they do it.
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans.
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. |
30839 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
In the late Proterozoic eon, around 550 million years ago, Earth had thawed out from a series of major glaciations, perhaps even global snowball conditions. The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans.
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Among the reasons for this remarkable diversification was a sustained rise in oxygen from photosynthetic life. |
30840 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans.
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Among the reasons for this remarkable diversification was a sustained rise in oxygen from photosynthetic life. Higher levels of oxygen allowed for more diverse, multicellular organisms because they require oxygen in high enough concentrations that it can reach interior cells. |
30841 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The end of the Proterozoic marked the beginning of a brand new era — the Paleozoic, which extended from around 540 million to 251 million years ago.
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans.
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Among the reasons for this remarkable diversification was a sustained rise in oxygen from photosynthetic life. Higher levels of oxygen allowed for more diverse, multicellular organisms because they require oxygen in high enough concentrations that it can reach interior cells. The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. |
30842 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The first period of the Paleozoic — the Cambrian — saw a remarkable explosion in the diversity of life, known, appropriately, as the Cambrian explosion. Most of the life that exists today emerged during the first 10 million years of that period, including the first complex multicellular life and familiar groups such as mollusks and crustaceans.
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Among the reasons for this remarkable diversification was a sustained rise in oxygen from photosynthetic life. Higher levels of oxygen allowed for more diverse, multicellular organisms because they require oxygen in high enough concentrations that it can reach interior cells. The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed. |
30843 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The ancient supercontinent of Gondwana, which formed around 600 million years ago. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Among the reasons for this remarkable diversification was a sustained rise in oxygen from photosynthetic life. Higher levels of oxygen allowed for more diverse, multicellular organisms because they require oxygen in high enough concentrations that it can reach interior cells. The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. |
30844 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Higher levels of oxygen allowed for more diverse, multicellular organisms because they require oxygen in high enough concentrations that it can reach interior cells. The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. |
30845 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. |
30846 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The stratospheric ozone layer, which had developed during the Neoproterozoic era (1 billion to 538 million years ago), protected animals from the sun's damaging ultraviolet rays and helped populate the land. Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. |
30847 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. |
30848 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Some researchers even argue for a possible "bottleneck" effect, where the few life-forms that survived the Neoproterozoic ice ages (Snowball Earth or not) were able to rapidly fill emerging niches as Earth thawed.
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. |
30849 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. |
30850 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Related: 'Once again, innovation and proliferation ended with catastrophe': The environmental disaster of plants taking over the world
A major glacial event occurred at the end of the following period of the Paleozoic, the Ordovician, around 450 million years ago, as chemical weathering outpaced the volcanic emissions of gas and atmospheric CO2 levels dropped. The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter. |
30851 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. |
30852 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The resulting cooling caused a buildup in ice mass on the large South Pole–centered supercontinent of Gondwana. Sea levels dropped. Much of the coastal habitat that had been home to primitive mollusks and crustaceans disappeared. Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. |
30853 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Some of the creatures scraped by, but about half of all existing genuses perished. Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. |
30854 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Much as we can only wonder today what knowledge was lost in the ransacking of the Library of Alexandria, we can also ponder what sort of magnificent creatures born of the Cambrian explosion were lost. Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. |
30855 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end. |
30856 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Welcome to the first of the widely recognized global mass extinction events. It will hardly be the last we encounter.
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end.
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. |
30857 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The most well-known extinction event ended the reign of the dinosaurs roughly 66 million years ago. But the deadliest extinction event took place at the end of the Permian period, roughly 250 million years ago. It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end.
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. |
30858 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
It is referred to in the scientific community as the Permian-Triassic (or P-T for short) extinction, but because an estimated 90% of all Permian species disappeared from the face of the planet, it has earned a nickname: the Great Dying. Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end.
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. |
30859 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Marine organisms were hit especially hard, with 96% of species perishing. Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end.
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone. |
30860 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Gone were the trilobites so familiar to amateur fossil collectors everywhere — primitive arthropods that were the distant ancestors of the modern horseshoe crab. Having survived the earlier Ordovician extinction event, their own nearly 300-million-year moment had come to an end.
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone.
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. |
30861 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone.
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. |
30862 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
A giant dragonfly from the Carboniferous period that was wiped out in the Great Dying mass extinction. (Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone.
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles. |
30863 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
(Image credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Not only were the vast majority of marine invertebrates gone, but so were the earliest fish species. On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone.
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event. |
30864 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
On land, more than two thirds of amphibian and reptile species and nearly one third of insect species were wiped out. Another iconic species, a giant dragonfly called Meganeuropsis with a nearly three-foot (0.9 meter) wingspan that is often included in artist depictions of the Carboniferous period — and to this day still haunts my nightmares — was now gone.
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. |
30865 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. |
30866 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The P-T extinction event wiped out many of the groups that had dominated life on land, freeing up ecological niches to be filled by new organisms, including reptiles such as crocodiles and the earliest dinosaurs. Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. |
30867 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. |
30868 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Once again, there were both winners and losers. Who won and who lost, in this case, came down to geology and geochemical weathering cycles.
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. |
30869 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event.
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%). |
30870 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Midway through the Paleozoic, around 420 million years ago, we saw the emergence of plants with roots, stems, and leaves, which as we now know helped accelerate chemical weathering by producing acids that dissolve rock, helping cycle water from the soil back into the atmosphere. This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. |
30871 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
This may have led to a slow, steady decrease in atmospheric CO2 levels through the late Paleozoic. The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals. |
30872 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The spread of these vascular plants, however, also led to a new source of organic matter that could be buried on land or carried off in rivers for ocean burial. Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. |
30873 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Increased burial of organic matter causes rising atmospheric oxygen levels because that organic matter is the product of photosynthesis, which splits up oxygen and carbon atoms. The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. |
30874 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The carbon, once buried, is no longer available to cannibalize the liberated oxygen. In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. |
30875 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
In the Paleozoic, oxygen concentrations climbed as high as 35% (almost twice the current concentration of 21%).
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. |
30876 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Those high oxygen levels favored synapsids, creatures with a high metabolism, featuring a single hole in each side of their skull that led to improved jaw function. They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. |
30877 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
They were part of a diverse group of four-legged terrestrial animals, including carnivores, insectivores, and herbivores, that first arose in the late Carboniferous and would evolve into the group we today know as mammals.
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. |
30878 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be. |
30879 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. |
30880 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Skull of a Rubidgeinae, an extinct subfamily of gorgonopsid therapsids. (Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. |
30881 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
(Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. |
30882 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
(Image credit: RMDobson/Getty Images)
By the early Permian, they were the dominant terrestrial species. By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. |
30883 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
By the mid-Permian, another group of proto-mammals — the possibly warm-blooded, somewhat rodent-like therapsids — emerged and became the new dominant species. By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. |
30884 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
By the late Permian, they may have even developed fur. One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. |
30885 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
One group, known as Theriodontia (Latin for "beast tooth"), displayed a number of evolutionary innovations: A shift in the bones supporting the jaw allowed the jaw to open wider, and may have aided hearing as well. The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. |
30886 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The skull and teeth became larger, the teeth more specialized, and the jaw more powerful. They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. |
30887 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
They seemed primed to take over. But it was not to be.
Everything changed at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary. |
30888 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Levels of CO2 spiked. That led to massive warming. Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. |
30889 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Plate tectonics by now had brought all the continents together into a single giant continent — Pangea — straddled across the equator. It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. |
30890 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
It was already difficult for maritime moisture to penetrate deep into the center of the continent. Rapid greenhouse warming made it even hotter and drier, according both to climate model simulations of the end of the Permian and analyses of the fossil river deposits from Pangean floodplains. The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. |
30891 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. |
30892 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The sudden drying would have led to the massive die-off of the tenuous, moisture-dependent forests that had arisen over the course of the Paleozoic. That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. |
30893 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment. |
30894 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
That meant less burial of organic matter on land, assisted perhaps by decreased carbon export to the deep oceans due to a collapsing marine food web. Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. |
30895 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Atmospheric oxygen levels appear to have dropped precipitously as a result, reaching concentrations as low as 15% at the P-T boundary.
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. They include the reptiles, birds, and now-extinct dinosaurs. |
30896 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
Plummeting oxygen levels helped dinosaurs become the dominant group on Earth. (Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. They include the reptiles, birds, and now-extinct dinosaurs. What distinguished them from their relatives, the synapsids and therapsids, was the presence of two holes (instead of one) on each side of their skull. |
30897 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
(Image credit: Roger Harris/SPL/Getty Images)
The drop in oxygen was a further contributor to the mass die-off. The combination of greenhouse warming and low oxygen would have led to widespread hypoxia — a state where organisms simply cannot take in enough oxygen to support metabolism. That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. They include the reptiles, birds, and now-extinct dinosaurs. What distinguished them from their relatives, the synapsids and therapsids, was the presence of two holes (instead of one) on each side of their skull. One subgroup of synapsids, known as archosaurs — which includes crocodilians and the earliest dinosaurs — exploited that innovation to develop a more efficient respiratory system that could make more effective use of the available oxygen. |
30898 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
That's where the dinosaurs come in. The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. They include the reptiles, birds, and now-extinct dinosaurs. What distinguished them from their relatives, the synapsids and therapsids, was the presence of two holes (instead of one) on each side of their skull. One subgroup of synapsids, known as archosaurs — which includes crocodilians and the earliest dinosaurs — exploited that innovation to develop a more efficient respiratory system that could make more effective use of the available oxygen. That gave them a leg up on the competition when oxygen levels plummeted at the P-T boundary. |
30899 | 'They seemed primed to take over': How the Great Dying doomed the 'beast tooth' and set the stage for the dawn of the dinosaurs
The proto-mammals that had come to dominance during the Permian — the synapsids and therapsids — had thrived off high oxygen levels. But as oxygen concentrations dropped, they were now poorly suited to their environment.
Enter the diapsids, a wide-ranging group of tetrapod vertebrates that first emerged during the Carboniferous around 300 million years ago. They include the reptiles, birds, and now-extinct dinosaurs. What distinguished them from their relatives, the synapsids and therapsids, was the presence of two holes (instead of one) on each side of their skull. One subgroup of synapsids, known as archosaurs — which includes crocodilians and the earliest dinosaurs — exploited that innovation to develop a more efficient respiratory system that could make more effective use of the available oxygen. That gave them a leg up on the competition when oxygen levels plummeted at the P-T boundary. Dinosaurs, it turns out, were direct beneficiaries of the P-T extinction event. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.