# Did i miss the dinosaur extinction anniversary? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 18, 2020, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426 "2020-08-18T19:16:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/1 "2020-08-18T19:16:48Z")
As far back as i remember, i always heard the dinosaurs extinctified 65 million years ago… I’ve recently started seeing references to it being 66 million years… So when did that tick over ? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/2 "2020-08-18T19:21:02Z")
Reminds me of the old joke about a student being asked when the dinosaurs went extinct and he answered sixty-five million and eight years ago. He was asked how he came up with such a precise figure. He said that his teacher had told him in the second grade that the dinosaurs had gone extinct sixty-five million years ago and it had been eight years since then. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/3 "2020-08-18T19:30:13Z")
It would be interesting to know the history of the dating. The Wikipedia page on the K–Pg boundary lists 66.043 +/- 0.011 Ma, which is more precision than I expected (not that I’m the least bit up to speed on radiometric dating.) ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/4 "2020-08-18T19:39:59Z")
Well, 2020 has already lasted for approximately 1,000,000 years. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2020, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/5 "2020-08-18T20:03:49Z")
Radiometric dating techniques have improved and we have been able to get a more precise estimate of when the K-PG boundary is. It is basically a thin layer of ash found worldwide above which there are no non-avian dinosaurs. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2020, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/6 "2020-08-19T03:59:34Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > It is basically a thin layer of ash found worldwide above which there are no non-avian dinosaurs. Which supports my theory that the avian dinosaurs had a big barbecue and ate all of the other dinosaurs. But, no, everyone wants to blame the asteroid. ---
**Author:** ![Crane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crane/32/3495_2.png) [@Crane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crane)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2020, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/7 "2020-08-19T12:41:03Z")
So, tell Donald and he’ll make them teach the BBQ theory in schools. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2020, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/8 "2020-08-19T16:20:57Z")
Teach the controversy ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2020, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/9 "2020-08-20T17:49:56Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Reminds me of the old joke about a student being asked when the dinosaurs went extinct and he answered sixty-five million and eight years ago. He was asked how he came up with such a precise figure. He said that his teacher had told him in the second grade that the dinosaurs had gone extinct sixty-five million years ago and it had been eight years since then. Yeah, i reckon part that and part some scientist who just wants to be different. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_S](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@Max\_S](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_S)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/10 "2020-08-25T05:25:24Z")
I’ve found a good tertiary [source](https://www.quora.com/When-did-the-dinosaurs-die-out-65-million-years-ago-or-66-million-years-ago) from Quora which is in line with your post. ~Max ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2020, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/11 "2020-08-25T07:34:00Z")
Well, there goes my reason for opening this thread - in the first reply, no less! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2020, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-i-miss-the-dinosaur-extinction-anniversary/918426/12 "2020-08-26T04:23:59Z")
It’s all them leap-seconds the atomic-clock people kept throwing in. They added up.