Wulliam Botke and his team at the Southwest Research Institute have come up with a mind-boggling possibility. Using computer simulations fueled by data from the field, they suggest a connection between the glorious lunar crater Tycho and the extinction of the dinosaurs.
Planetary astronomers have long known that there are "families" of asteroids; follow enough asteroidal orbits back in time far enough and some of them will be at the same place at the same time. Botke and his team found one such family was struck by a huge interloper roughly 160 million years ago, setting various bodies on new courses. About 65 million years ago, one of those mountains in the sky slammed into Earth, killing the dinosaurs and many other forms of life. Another body from the initial collision deep in the Main Asteroid Belt, according to computer projections, eventually struck the Moon, creating the crater Tycho.
Tycho is one of the jewels of the Moon. It is one of the brightest craters, due to its relative youth, and is beautifully constructed, with magnificent terraced walls and a prominent central peak. Tycho's brilliant ray system, which traces the path of material ejected by the impact that created the crater, can be followed halfway around the Moon.
Whether Botke's theory is ultimately supported by clinching evidence or not, it's one cool idea.
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