An asteroid extinguished all the dinosaurs except for birds. Here’s why

On the final day of the Cretaceous period, some 66 million years ago, Earth was teeming with a dazzling variety of dinosaurs. In North America, the superpredator Tyrannosaurus rex stalked its favorite prey, the three-horned Triceratops. In Asia, agile raptors eyed herds of duck-billed and armored herbivores, and a menagerie of miniature carnivores and plant eaters roamed the European islands. South of the equator long-necked behemoths heavier than jet airplanes shook the ground as they walked. And all over the world feather-covered dinosaurs flaunted their plumage, some flapping and flying through the air.Then, suddenly, the Age of the Dinosaurs was over. A massive asteroid slammed into the Gulf of Mexico, triggering a chain reaction of carnage: earthquakes, tsunamis and wildfires followed by years of darkness and cold. It was probably the worst moment in Earth history, and before long three out of every four species were extinct. The asteroid was so catastrophic that it spawned one of the greatest myths in science, one so pervasive and repeated so constantly that most of us think it is true. It is the myth that dinosaurs are gone, felled one and all during the end-Cretaceous extinction.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article,