Chicxulub to get its very own ‘Jurassic Park’
Construction began today at a new attraction near the entrance to Chicxulub, in the municipality of Progreso.
The new park, named “Sendero Jurásico”, or “Jurassic Path,” is planned to cover an area roughly a kilometer long.
It will feature large images — likely statues — of dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures, as well as information regarding the extinction-level event that took place in Chicxulub, roughly 65 million years ago.
The crater has a diameter of over 180 kilometers, and it is believed that the heat produced by the impact liquified the ground and created the network of cenotes for which Yucatán is famous.
“The idea behind this park is to tell the world about what happened here 65 million years ago, as well as to attract tourism and stimulate the local economy,” said Progreso Mayor Julián Zacarías Curi.
Earlier: Residents see little gain from famous Chicxulub Crater
Progreso recently completed the construction of another similar attraction, a museum located across from the port city’s boardwalk called “El Museo del Meteorito,” or “Meteorite Museum.”
The museum, which has not yet opened to the public, is reported to be full of effigies of dinosaurs, exotic plants, fossils, and information kiosks about the Yucatán’s prehistoric past.
Because of its great size, and the fact that much of it is underwater, the crater is impossible to observe with the naked eye. However, researchers since the 1970s have studied its composition for clues regarding the world-shaking event.
Scientists maintain that the force of the explosion must have released energy over a billion times higher than the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.
Senior Editor Carlos Rosado van der Gracht is a Mexican expedition/Canadian photographer, adventure leader, and PhD candidate. Born in Mérida, Carlos holds multimedia, philosophy, and translation degrees from universities in Mexico, Canada and Norway.
