Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent Notifications can be managed in browser preferences. All News Sport Culture Lifestyle Related: Asteroid that wiped out dinosaurs struck Earth at 'deadliest possible angle' Sixty-six million years ago, a colossal asteroid, about 10km in diameter, struck Earth in the area of what is now the Caribbean, triggering instantaneous and catastrophic changes that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs and roughly half of all species. The immediate aftermath of the impact involved incineration for those near ground zero, followed by thermal radiation, supersonic winds, and megatsunamis up to 100 metres high, devastating regions within thousands of kilometres of the impact site. Within hours, a global belt of dust and soot circled the Earth, blocking sunlight, causing temperatures to plummet, and leading to widespread wildfires and acid rain, which further decimated plant and animal life.…