It hit the planet about 3.26 billion years ago and is estimated to have been up to 200 times larger than the space rock that later killed the dinosaurs.
The new findings, published in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on Monday, suggest that this massive collision not only brought destruction to Earth, but also helped early life thrive.
The research has been a passion project for Drabon, who was inspired by numerous previous studies that showed the potential impact a meteorite collision can have on life forms.
“We have long known that on the young Earth meteorite impacts were both more frequent and, on average, larger than today,” said Andrew Knoll, a Harvard geologist and study co-author.
“While people have speculated about the potential biological and environmental consequences of ancient impacts, there has been little hard data to test varying hypotheses,” Knoll added.
Persons:
Everest, Nadja Drabon, ”, Andrew Knoll, “, ” Knoll, Drabon
Organizations:
National Academy of Sciences, Harvard University, NBC News, Harvard
Locations:
South Africa