- 4342
- SEA MONSTER
- on other planets? 72 million-year-old 'blue dragon' unearthed
in Japan is unlike anything we've ever seen.
The near-complete remains of a never-before-seen “mosasaur' that
dominated the ancient Pacific Ocean have been unearthed in Japan. The great
white shark-size creature is unlike any other aquatic animal, dead or alive.
-
------------------------- 4342
- SEA MONSTER
- on other planets?
-
- Mosasaurs are a group of apex marine
predators that ruled the oceans toward the end of the Cretaceous period. Unlike
the mosasaur, the "blue dragon" had unusually large rear flippers and
a dorsal fin.
-
- The near-complete remains of an ancient,
great white shark-size sea monster that likely terrorized the ancient oceans it
used to inhabit. The prehistoric predator, which researchers have named
"blue dragon," has an unusual body plan that sets it apart from its
extinct relatives and is unlike any living creature.
-
- The exceptional fossils, which are around
72 million years old, were discovered along the Aridagawa River in Wakayama
Prefecture on Honshu island. They belong to a never-before-seen species of
mosasaur which is a group of air-breathing aquatic reptiles that were apex
marine predators during the Cretaceous period,145 million to 66 million years
ago
-
- Like other mosasaurs it had a dolphin-like
torso with four paddle-like flippers, an alligator-shaped snout and a long
tail. But it also had a dorsal fin like a shark or dolphin, which is not seen
in any other mosasaur species.
-
- What confused researchers the most was the
size of the new mosasaur's rear flippers, which were even longer than their
front flippers. Not only is this a first among mosasaurs but it is also
extremely uncommon among all living and extinct aquatic species.
-
- Almost all swimming animals have their
largest flippers toward the front of their bodies, which helps them steer
through the water. Having larger flippers at the rear of the body would be like
driving a car by steering the rear wheels instead of the front ones, which
would make it much harder to turn quickly.
-
- The researchers suspect that instead of
using the rear flippers to turn, it angled them upward or downward to quickly
dive down or ascend through the water column, which may have helped make them
adept hunters. The dorsal fin could have made it easier for the creature to
turn, which may have counteracted the extra drag from the rear flippers.
- It was about the same size as great white
sharks, which grow to around 16 feet
long. But other species could grow up to 56 feet.
-
- Mosasaurs emerged around 100 million years
ago and died off around 66 million years ago along with the nonavian dinosaurs
after a massive asteroid struck Earth. During the last 20 million years of
their existence, the terrifying sea lizards were the aquatic equivalent of
Tyrannosaurs rex and sat at the top of the food chain, thanks in part to the
disappearance of other top marine predators.
-
- What type of creatures occupy the ocean on
other planets? Liquid water on
exoplanets is the key to finding life among the stars, and now, scientists have
proposed a new strategy that might improve the
chances of finding it.
-
- Researchers hypothesized that if the
atmosphere of an exoplanet has less CO2 than its neighbors, there may be vast
quantities of water on its surface or even life, sea life.
-
- Currently, finding liquid water on planets
outside the solar system is a major challenge. Of the 5,000 or so exoplanets
we've discovered, liquid water hasn't
been confirmed on any. The best scientists can do is detect traces of
water in exoplanet atmospheres and determine whether planets could
theoretically support water in the liquid state.
-
- We know that initially, the Earth's
atmosphere used to be mostly CO2, but then the carbon dissolved into the ocean
and made the planet able to support life for the last four billion years.
-
- Once carbon is dissolved in the oceans,
tectonic activity then locks it away in Earth's crust, creating an effective
carbon sink. This is partly why our planet has significantly lower CO2 levels
compared with our neighbors. Earth's
atmosphere is around 0.04% CO2, whereas the atmospheres on Venus and Mars are
both over 95% CO2.
-
- If scientists observe a similarly low-carbon
atmosphere on an exoplanet, it could indicate the presence of vast oceans
similar to our own. Looking for CO2 is
easier than finding liquid water. CO2 absorbs infrared radiation very well,
meaning it produces a strong signal that scientists can detect.
-
- It's also possible to perform this
technique with existing telescopes, such as the James Webb Space Telescope
(JWST). Ground-based observations should also be possible because of the
specific wavelength CO2 is measured at, whereas Earth's atmosphere can torpedo
experiments at other wavelengths by partially absorbing the signals.
-
- Another scenario could contribute to an
atmosphere low in carbon: life itself. The main ways life on our planet
captures carbon are through photosynthesis and making shells, and around 20% of
all carbon capture on Earth is caused by biological processes.
-
- By leveraging the signature of carbon
dioxide, not only can we infer the presence of liquid water on a faraway
planet, but it also provides a path to identify life itself.
-
- JWST found the signature of water on
exoplanet WASP-96B. A new technique may make it even easier for telescopes like
JWST to find water.
NASA identifies 17 planets
with possible subsurface oceans, and they could be fit for life.
-
- Although the approach looks like it'll work
in principle, there may still be hurdles, as it's not clear how many
terrestrial exoplanets also have atmospheres.
As researchers keep
discovering more exoplanets, more atmospheres will also be spotted. And this
technique could help figure out whether they could sustain life.
-
-
February 4, 2023 SEA MONSTER
- on other planets? 4342
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------ “Jim Detrick” -----------
--------------------- --- Monday, February 5,
2024
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