BOULDER, Colo., Dec. 1 (UPI) -- European researchers say it is unlikely a meteor strike was responsible for the mass extinction of life on earth 250 million years ago.
A team of scientists led by Christian Koeberl from the University of Vienna studied rock samples from the Carnic Alps of southern Austria and the western Dolomites in northeast Italy.
"Our geochemical analyses of these two famous end-Permian sections in Austria and Italy reveal no tangible evidence of extraterrestrial impact," Koeberl said. "This suggests the mass extinction must have been home-grown."
Koeberl said high levels of carbon dioxide, likely produced by volcanic activity, is a more probable cause of the mass extinction.
"Our findings support the view that evidence for an extraterrestrial impact event during this time period is weak and inconsistent," Koeberl said. "At the same time, they suggest that widespread volcanic activity may have been the 'smoking gun,' quite literally, that wiped out much of life on Earth."
