There Could Be Dinosaur Bones on the Moon, Says Scientist

Dinosaurs may have beaten humans to the Moon by approximately 65 million years. Or at least dinosaur bones have. 

Science journalist Peter Brannen wrote about the theory in his 2017 book The End of the World, in which geophysicist Mario Rebolledo theorized the asteroid that wiped out the giant reptiles 65 million years ago may have flung pieces of dinosaur bones into space and onto the Moon. 

This description of the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs is probably the best piece of writing I've read in a while. That was beautiful. pic.twitter.com/13iLrLrMe2

— Matt Austin (@BitsHammer) January 2, 2019

According to Brannen and Rebolledo, the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs was so massive, the Earth’s atmosphere was torn and formed a vacuum even before the asteroid hit. 

In his book, Brannen shares an interview with Rebolledo, who explains in detail what may have actually occurred 65 million years ago during the collision. 

“The pressure of the atmosphere in front of the asteroid started excavating the crater before it even got there,” said Rebolledo. When the asteroid made impact, it was intact. 

“As the asteroid collided with the Earth, in the sky above it where there should have been air, the rock had punched a hole of outer space vacuum in the atmosphere. As the heavens rushed in to close this hole, enormous volumes of earth were expelled into orbit and beyond—all within a second or two of impact,” Rebolledo told Brannen. 

“So there’s probably little bits of dinosaur bone up on the Moon?” asked Brannen. 

“Yeah, probably,” said Rebolledo. 

The asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs is believed to be the one that created the Chicxulub Crater in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. The crater has an area of 25,000 square kilometers, which is 41 times larger than Metro Manila. 

Size and Impact Location of Asteroid