Undersea volcanic activity has been blamed for a mass extinction in the seas 93 million years ago. In the so-called "anoxic event" of the late Cretaceous Period, the ocean depths became starved of oxygen, wiping out swathes of marine organisms. Researchers from the University of Alberta, Canada, found a tell-tale signature of underwater volcanism in rocks dating to the period. Their findings have been published in the journal Nature. At the time of the anoxic event, the average temperature was nearly twice that of today, researchers say. Palm trees grew in what would later become Alaska and large reptiles roamed northern Canada. The Arctic Ocean was ice-free and scientists think it would have had a temperature we might describe today as lukewarm. Read the full story here. Miss M.
