Mass Extinctions and Carbon Dioxide
The evidence that the Earth's "Big Five" extinction events were triggered by the enormous volcanic events that created the so-called Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) continues to accumulate. The most catastrophic of these, the end Permian extinction, killed most of the species that existed at the time. It was long suspected that it was tied to the epic Siberian Traps volcanism (think many millions of Mount Saint Helens eruptions) and new geochronological evidence makes the evidence of simultaneity far more precise. So why were these eruptions, which large as they were, were confined to relatively small portions of the globe, so catastrophic for the whole planet? The big culprit seems to have been carbon dioxide, with an assist from sulfur dioxide. The sulfur dioxide caused as sharp global cooling, lasting only a few years, and extreme acid rain. The CO2 triggered multi-millenium long global warming and ocean acidification, producing anoxic oceans that killed most sea ...