All articles tagged with #dinosaurs
Thai scientists announce Uragasaurus kalasinensis, a newly identified plant-eating dinosaur thought to have lived about 150 million years ago and about the length of a cricket pitch.
Gus, a 63%-complete 38-foot Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton unearthed on a South Dakota ranch, goes to Sotheby’s in New York for auction on July 14 with a $19 million starting bid and an estimated value of $20–$30 million, potentially the highest private dinosaur- fossil price yet. Reconstructed from 183 bones after years of work by Theropoda Expeditions, the fossil’s sale sparks debate over private ownership of priceless relics, even as Sotheby’s says these auctions can help fund paleontology and recover fossils that might otherwise be lost.
A 2025 Science study of the Naashoibito Member in New Mexico’s San Juan Basin dates fossils to roughly the final 380,000 years before the mass extinction, revealing a diverse, thriving dinosaur ecosystem that included Tyrannosaurus, Torosaurus and Alamosaurus—challenging the long-held view of a global dinosaur decline. The site shows two distinct regional communities, but experts caution this is one location and not a worldwide census, so more dated sites are needed to confirm whether the end of the dinosaurs was the result of an external catastrophe or a broader decline.
A rare titanosaur tail bone from Antarctica, found in 1985 on James Ross Island and stored for decades, has been identified by researchers; the fossil suggests Antarctica once hosted lush forests and a hospitable habitat for dinosaurs, though the exact species remains unidentified.
A Titanosaur vertebra found in 1985 by a British Antarctic Survey team and stored in a museum drawer for decades has been reclassified as Antarctica’s first dinosaur fossil, dating to about 82 million years ago. The bone belongs to a small-to-mid-sized titanosaur, suggesting these long-necked giants once inhabited Antarctica’s forested past and hinting that southern continents remained connected via Gondwana for dinosaur dispersal.
A rare Titanosaur dinosaur fossil from Antarctica was found tucked away in a drawer, a surprising discovery that sheds light on the continent’s prehistoric life.
Researchers confirm the first dinosaur bone found on Antarctica is a fragmentary sauropod vertebra dating to the Late Cretaceous Campanian, likely a six to seven meter titanosaur. Collected in 1985 on James Ross Island, the incomplete bone expands the continent's dinosaur record and hints at ancient connections with South America and Zealandia.
FT’s Dylan Neri reviews Steve Brusatte’s The Story of Birds, arguing that birds are dinosaurs and tracing how a coelurosaur lineage led to modern birds via feathers, flight, and endothermy, anchored by Archaeopteryx; the book offers an accessible, evidence-packed narrative that makes a compelling case for evolution, even if occasionally the prose leans toward familiar authorial flair.
The Chicxulub impact 66 million years ago released molten debris that heated the upper atmosphere and sulfur- and soot-rich aerosols that blocked sunlight for years, triggering a drastic cooling that collapsed photosynthesis and reshaped life on Earth; while fires may have started in some regions, debates continue about how much the global die-off was due to heat, dust, or smoke, with survivors mainly among small, burrowing or detritus-eating species.
Push Square reports Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, a PS5 remake of the 1996 classic rebuilt in Unreal Engine 5, will launch on February 12, 2027, with standard $59.99 and Deluxe $69.99 editions offering 48-hour early access and outfits; the trailer shown during State of Play confirms overhauled stages and feathered dinosaurs.
Space Daily explains that the Sun's orbit around the Milky Way takes roughly 225–250 million years (230 Myr is the common figure), but this isn't precise since the period depends on position in the galaxy and Gaia data have nudged estimates downward. One galactic year ago places Earth in the Late Triassic (about 230–233 million years ago), when the first dinosaurs appeared. The idea of returning to the exact same spot is misleading because differential rotation, moving spiral arms, and the Sun's vertical oscillation change the local environment over time. A plane-crossing extinction link remains unproven, so the galactic-year picture is a useful though imprecise scale of cosmic time.
Argentine paleontologists describe Kank australis, a new unenlagiid theropod from the Late Cretaceous Chorrillo Formation near El Calafate, about 70 million years old and roughly 2.5–3 m long. Its neck musculature and sharp ridged teeth, plus a pronounced second-toe claw, suggest an active fish-eating lifestyle in riverine wetlands alongside fish fossils and other fauna. The find bridges unenlagiids across southern Patagonia, Antarctica, and northern Patagonia. Initial remains were found in 2018, with a key cervical vertebra identified in 2024 confirming a new species; the study was published online May 28, 2026 in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
A Johns Hopkins study published in PNAS reports a pre-impact spike in fungal microfossils dating to roughly 30,000–10,000 years before the Chicxulub impact, coinciding with the Deccan Traps volcanic phase in India and suggesting the biosphere was already undergoing ecological stress before the asteroid strike, while a later, global fungal bloom after the impact supports widespread collapse and reinforces that the asteroid was the proximate extinction driver.
A Johns Hopkins study analyzed ancient fungal spores in sediments and found three pre-impact fungal blooms dating up to 30,000 years before the asteroid, likely tied to Deccan Traps volcanism that cooled the climate and stressed ecosystems; a second fungal surge occurred at the asteroid boundary, and recovery after the mass extinction was slow and uneven, suggesting the crisis began before the impact.
A new study describes a fearsome marine reptile from the dinosaur era as the ocean’s top predator, likening it to the T. rex in size and ferocity based on fossil evidence.