The Sun as a Swinger? Cardiff U's Title is Better for Mass Extinction Article

"Did the solar system 'bounce' finish the dinosaurs?"
Cardiff University News Center (May 3, 2008)

It's more of a 'sway' or 'swing' than a "bounce," but I'll admit that it's a catchy title.

The point is that "the sun's movement through the Milky Way regularly sends comets hurtling into the inner solar system – coinciding with mass life extinctions on earth, a new study claims." The solar system swings above, then below, the plane of the galaxy: and there's a chance that each time we go through the thickest part, comets get dislodged and fall in toward the sun.

When one hits Earth, it's not a good day to be around.

Interesting article, for astronomy and/or paleontology buffs.

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Related posts, at

• "A Serious Search for Other Worlds, Life, and - Maybe - Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence"