Why is it important to understand the cause of the dinosaurs extinction?

Understanding the causes of an extinction can help us prepare for and hopefully prevent a similar situation in the future. The fact that as much as 90% of dinosaur species died out from climate change near the end of the Mesozoic warns us not to allow global warming to get out of hand. Because we know that the death blow to the dinosaurs was the asteroid impact, astronomers keep track of Near Earth Objects, and are formulating plans for deflecting a large asteroid or comet in the event that one heads toward Earth.