The K-Pg Impact Simulator
A Scientifically Accurate Timeline
of the Dinosaur Extinction
Driven by Global Scientific Journals
The K-Pg Impact Simulator is not just a visual experience; it is a data-driven reconstruction of the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. Our timeline and environmental variables are cross-referenced with primary research from PNAS and the GSA Bulletin.
By synthesising findings from researchers like Walter Alvarez and Pincelli Hull, this simulator provides a scientifically rigorous look at the thermal pulse and atmospheric changes that ended the Mesozoic Era.
Geophysics of the Chicxulub Impact
Insights from the UTIG and the IODP The immediate aftermath depicted in The K-Pg Impact Simulator—including the mega-tsunamis and the crustal displacement—is informed by the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG). Data from the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) drilling expeditions into the Chicxulub crater allow us to simulate the “Impact Winter” with high fidelity.
This section of the tool illustrates how vaporised sulfate-rich rocks led to the global acidification and darkness described by Sean Gulick and Joanna Morgan.
Ecosystem Collapse and the Cenozoic Recovery
Paleontological Data from the Smithsonian Institution The “Long-Term Aftermath” phase of The K-Pg Impact Simulator tracks the recovery of life based on fossil records curated by the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH).
Following the research of Kirk Johnson and Carlos Jaramillo, the simulator visualises the transition from a post-impact wasteland to the rapid diversification of mammalian life. Witness the evolutionary bridge between the extinction of non-avian dinosaurs and the arrival of calorie-dense plant groups like legumes.
