Dinosaurs could have avoided mass extinction if the killer asteroid had landed anywhere else

All species inevitably go extinct and the history of life on Earth is one of constant turnover

The decline of the dinosaurs, the rise of mammals and, ultimately, the origins of humans were even more unlikely than previously thought, according to new research. The huge asteroid collision that sparked this change in the Earth’s diversity was already a highly improbable roll of the celestial dice. But a new study suggests the mass extinction that followed it was only so severe because of where the asteroid struck.

Scientists believe the dinosaurs were largely wiped out 66m years ago when an asteroid collision released a huge dust and soot cloud that triggered global climate