Extinction Over Time
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History · Identifies five major mass extinctions and treats a sixth as a current question.
EarthThe ExplainPlanets You Don’t KnowPublished 28 July 2026
Mass extinction of Earth
Earth almost extinct ho chuki hai. Aur wo bhi kai baar.
What this reel claims
Mass extinction of Earth
01
Scientists conventionally recognise five major Phanerozoic mass extinctions.
02
The end-Permian was the most severe conventional mass extinction, with an estimated 96% of species lost.
03
Earlier oxygenation and global glaciations also transformed life.
Evidence behind the story
What this source establishes
Open source ↗
The Paleozoic Era
U.S. Geological Survey · End-Permian estimate of about 96% of species lost; discusses multiple mechanisms.
What didn’t fit
What didn’t fit
The number seven mixes unlike events. The Big Five are defined from a relatively rich Phanerozoic fossil record. Snowball Earth and the Great Oxidation Event occurred much earlier, when evidence is different and life was largely microbial. They were enormous transformations, but counting each as the same kind of near-ending implies precision the record cannot supply. Snowball survival also has multiple proposed refugia rather than one settled pond scenario.
Corrections