Around 252 million years ago, volcanoes across what is now Siberia erupted repeatedly for more than a million years, releasing perhaps 100,000 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide and helping wipe out roughly 90 per cent of marine species in the deadliest mas
Earth’s deadliest extinction—triggered by volcanic CO₂—offers a stark climate warning for today’s oceans
The obvious questions
What caused the Great Dying?
Massive volcanic eruptions in Siberia released **100,000 billion tonnes of CO₂** over a million years, triggering extreme warming and ocean chemistry shifts that wiped out **90% of marine life**.
How does this relate to today’s climate change?
Coverage highlights parallels: the extinction began with rapid ocean warming and acidification, similar to current trends linked to human CO₂ emissions.
Are modern oceans at risk of the same fate?
Researchers are investigating whether today’s marine species share the same metabolic vulnerabilities that doomed life during the Great Dying.
The story so far
Scientists have identified the primary cause of the **Permian-Triassic extinction event**, or the “Great Dying,” which occurred around **252 million years ago**. The event also disrupted ocean chemistry, causing metabolic collapse in marine life.
Coverage emphasizes the parallels between this ancient catastrophe and modern climate change. Watch for further comparisons between ancient and modern oceanic collapse indicators.
Synthesized by headlinez.news from the headlines below under a strict no-invention contract. ✓ fact-checked: unsupported claims removed (57% supported) Updated 47d ago.
The reporting (7)
- Scientists Finally Solved the Mystery of Earth’s ‘Great Dying.’ It’s Bad News for Our Future Gizmodo · 49d ago
- The Great Dying offers a warning for a world ignoring climate collapse resilience.org · 49d ago
- Scientists detect Earth's deadliest extinction signs in today's oceans: Great Dying started with warming s The Economic Times · 49d ago
- Metabolic vulnerability confirmed as cause of Earth’s biggest mass extinction Open Access Government · 49d ago
- Scientists finally solved the mystery of Earth's greatest mass extinction ScienceDaily · 49d ago
- Researchers confirm cause of Earth’s biggest mass extinction Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability · 49d ago
- Around 252 million years ago, volcanoes across what is now Siberia erupted repeatedly for more than a million years, releasing perhaps 100,000 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide and helping wipe out roughly 90 per cent of marine species in the deadliest mas Space Daily · 49d ago
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