Chicxulub Asteroid Impact

Date: ≈ 66 million years ago
Location: Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico
Appears In: Book 2
Jump Type: Historical Jump

What Happened

An asteroid roughly 6 miles wide struck the Yucatán Peninsula with the force of billions of atomic bombs, triggering earthquakes, tsunamis, and firestorms across the globe. The impact threw enough dust and debris into the atmosphere to block sunlight for months or years, collapsing food chains worldwide. It is the leading explanation for the mass extinction that ended the age of the dinosaurs, wiping out roughly three-quarters of all species on Earth.

Historical Context

The Chicxulub impact marks the boundary between the Cretaceous and Paleogene periods and remains one of the most consequential single events in the planet's history—the moment that ended the reign of the dinosaurs and cleared the way for mammals, eventually including humans, to dominate.

Timeline of the Event

A single asteroid, roughly 6 miles (10 km) across, enters Earth's atmosphere.
Impact near the present-day Yucatán Peninsula releases energy equivalent to billions of nuclear weapons.
Shockwaves, mega-tsunamis, and continent-spanning wildfires follow within hours.
Dust and sulfur aerosols block sunlight for months, collapsing plant life and food chains.
An estimated 75% of all species on Earth, including all non-avian dinosaurs, go extinct.

The Five Seconds Connection

In Five Seconds Too Soon, the device's chronometer fails entirely on this jump, giving Everett no reading at all—the first sign that it can reach far beyond human history. The trio lands minutes before impact, watching the sky itself catch fire with no possibility of intervention. It's the moment they first understand the device isn't just showing them tragedy. It's showing them extinction.