User:Meghk56

'''Why Did Dinosaurs Go Extinct? Did They?'''

The Main Theories


 * Impact Theory (Meteorite Impact)
 * Climate Change
 * Falling Water Levels
 * Diseases
 * Volcanism


 * Introduction 
 * Sixty-five million years ago, dinosaurs reigned the Earth totalling a period of one-hundred-thirty-five million years. Dinosaurs are well known as the longest living species on earth. Dinosaurs are During the Cretaceous Period, dinosaurs were wiped from the planet to near extinction. Although there is evidence that dinosaurs are not extinct, the majority of the species were killed through a number of different theories to which dinosaurs have gone extinct include a meteorite impact, climate change, falling ocean levels, diseases, or volcanism. Many scientists argue that dinosaurs were killed by a number of reasons that were all interconnected. One theory is that when the meteorite hit the earth it killed the majority of the dinosaur species but also caused dust to cloud the atmosphere killing all of the ecosystems and eliminating photosynthesis which led to starvation. Due to the explosion, there was a shock wave that disrupted the earth eliminating what was left of the dinosaurs but the few who survived died from the drastic changes in the weather and starvation.
 * Sixty-five million years ago, dinosaurs reigned the Earth totalling a period of one-hundred-thirty-five million years. Dinosaurs are well known as the longest living species on earth. Dinosaurs are During the Cretaceous Period, dinosaurs were wiped from the planet to near extinction. Although there is evidence that dinosaurs are not extinct, the majority of the species were killed through a number of different theories to which dinosaurs have gone extinct include a meteorite impact, climate change, falling ocean levels, diseases, or volcanism. Many scientists argue that dinosaurs were killed by a number of reasons that were all interconnected. One theory is that when the meteorite hit the earth it killed the majority of the dinosaur species but also caused dust to cloud the atmosphere killing all of the ecosystems and eliminating photosynthesis which led to starvation. Due to the explosion, there was a shock wave that disrupted the earth eliminating what was left of the dinosaurs but the few who survived died from the drastic changes in the weather and starvation.

* What are sunspots?

•	Sunspots are the darker, cooler spots on the surface of the sun.

•	Sunspots are located in the area of the sun called the photosphere

•	The photosphere is the visible surface of the sun

•	The photosphere has a temperature of 5,800 degrees kelvin, where sunspots have a temperature of 3,800 degrees kelvin

•	Sunspots are caused by some sort of interaction with the suns magnetic field, but these interactions are yet to be fully understood by scientists

•	There are 2 parts to a sunspot. The darker part which is called the umbra, and the lighter part surrounding the umbra which is called the penumbra.

•	The lower temperature of sunspots is due to their powerful magnetic fields, these fields prohibit heat and energy from flowing out of the solar interior

•	Sunspots usually travel in connected pairs and are connected by magnetic loops

•	The number and positions of sunspots on the photosphere will change over an 11-year period called the sunspot cycle

•	Throughout the cycle, sunspots are more common during solar maximum and show very few during solar minimum

What affects do sunspots have on our Universe?

•	Sunspots are immersed within very active regions. These regions can cause violent explosions like solar flares or coronal mass ejections (CME’s)

•	These explosions produce violent space weather. Earth’s atmosphere protects us from these solar winds and gusts, but in deep space humans and satellites would be left vulnerable.

•	Although our atmosphere protects us from solar winds and gusts, solar flares and CME’s can send enormous amounts of energy into collision with the atmosphere. This causes magnetic storms which can disrupt or alter radio and cell communication.

•	An example of this was during the 1989 solar maximum. Solar energy triggered a power surge which damaged transformers that were a part of the Hydro-Quebec power system. This left 6 million people in Canada and the US without electricity for 9+ hours.

•	Majority of climate scientists believe that sunspots and solar winds play a large part in climate change, but because our climate is influence by so many other factors it’s hard to confirm if there is a direct link or not.

•	There was a possible example of this during the 1600’s and 1700’s called the maunder minimum. During this time there was almost no sunspot activity. This coincided with a period of cold temperatures and severe winters in Europe and North America. Scientist believe that the decrease in the sun UV emissions could have triggered this climate change but haven’t been able to confirm if they were in fact related or not.

•	Another fascinating phenomena on earth has been directly related to sunspots. This phenomenon is known to us as the northern and southern lights. The penumbra (outer ring) of a sunspot emits an increased radiance of UV rays which affects the balance of energy on earth.

-a Life Sciences question -by Megan Hurst-Kraft, Lea Vanghel, Morgan Lester