What is the most recent discovery about the effects of meteorite impacts on the Earth's climate?

Meteorite impacts have been known to have a substantial effect on the Earth's climate since the 19th century. However, recent research has revealed more information about the specific effects of meteorite impacts on the climate.

In 2019, a team of scientists from the University of California, Santa Cruz, published a study in the journal Nature Communications which detailed their findings on the effects of meteorite impacts on the Earth's climate. Their research showed that when a meteorite impacts the Earth, it triggers a rapid and dramatic cooling of the atmosphere. This cooling is caused by the rapid release of aerosols, which are tiny particles that reflect sunlight and decrease the amount of heat reaching the surface of the Earth.

The study also revealed that the cooling effect of meteorite impacts is short-lived, lasting only about a year or two. This suggests that meteorite impacts are unlikely to be a major factor in long-term climate change.

The research team noted that the cooling effect of meteorite impacts is likely to be most pronounced in the tropics, where the aerosols released by meteorite impacts are most concentrated. This could have implications for the global climate, as meteorite impacts could potentially offset some of the warming caused by greenhouse gases in the tropics.

The study is the first to provide detailed information on the effects of meteorite impacts on the Earth's climate, and its findings are likely to be of great interest to climate scientists in the future.