With the likes ofGodzilla, King Kong, andthe Stay Puft Marshmallow Man,colossal creatures go hand in hand with New York City.However, itslatest giants introduction was a lot more civilized. On the morning ofJanuary 14, New Yorks American Museum of Natural History unveiled itsnew resident to packed crowds: a life-sized skeleton cast of a titanosaur.
This titanosauris 37meters (122feet) long, stands 6 meters (20 feet) tall and is thought to have weighed 63 tonnes (70tons). This is so large, the cast doesnt fit intothe museums largest available hall. To cater for its generous length, over 2.5 meters (9 feet) of its neck and head have to poke into the next room.
Although some real bones of the dinosaur are on display, such as its 2.4 meter (8 foot) femur, these are far too heavy to mount, so this life-size cast is actually made with 3D-printed lightweight fiberglass.
The dinosaur belongs to a group called sauropodscharacterizedby their very long necks, long tails, small heads and four legs. Titanosaurs include some of the largest creatures ever to walk the Earth, including the previouslargest dinosaur record-holder, Argentinosaurus.
Ladies & gentlemen, we are proud to present the #Titanosaur, the Museum’s largest dinosaur: https://t.co/4jT2kAfvTb pic.twitter.com/yxK68xPkXP
AMNH (@AMNH) January 14, 2016
As of yet, the dinosaur speciesis nameless, known to the museums researchers as the titanosaur or just 32893. To be given an official designation, the remains have to be anayzed and published ina peer-reviewed study. Although a study on 32893 has been submitted, it has yet to be published.
After 101.6 million years of laying in the dust and dirt, the titanosaur was dug up at a dinosaur graveyard in La Flecha, Patagonia, southern Argentina in May 2014, along with seven other dinosaur skeletons.The whole dig took seven expeditions over aperiod of 18 months, the Guardian reported. The remoteness of the location, combined with heavy-duty equipment and trucks used to excavate the 223 bones, meant a new road had to be built.
If you live in the United Kingdom and cant make it to the American Museum of Natural History yourself, David Attenborough has a new BBC show following the story of this titanosaurus. Filmed over the course of two years,Attenborough And The Giant Dinosaur will detail the dinosaurs excavation, its forensic investigation, and how it ended up at the New York museum. The programwill be broadcastonBBC One on January 24, 2016 at 6:30 p.m.
Read more: http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/new-york-museum-unveils-their-new-37-meter-titanosaur
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