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Woolly mammoths, giant sloths and saber-toothed cats were a fact of life for early humans.
But today’s researchers can only hope to find fossils that will shed light on the existence of these fascinating prehistoric creatures – and why they became extinct.
New techniques found in the northernmost regions of the Earth are helping to piece together unprecedented images of these animals as winter continues to surface from melting permafrost.
Fantastic creatures
Scientists compared a domesticated cat with saber-toothed teeth (above) to a modern lion (below). – with respect Prof. Alexey V. Lopatin
Experts digging in the Yakutia region of Russia have unearthed the first known mother of a cat with hot teeth. The baby was only three weeks old when it died 35 years ago.
The well-preserved remains, unearthed in the Siberian permafrost, are almost intact, consisting of surprisingly soft fur and even “beans of the toes” – as cat lovers call the paws – on its front legs.
It is the first evidence from Asia of Homotherium latidens, and the specimen’s genetic information will help researchers to better understand how these animals lived and hunted.
Compared to modern lions, the baby mummy’s appearance revealed striking differences, including dark fur, small ears and special structures to accommodate large incisors that never had a chance to grow.
Ocean secrets
The search for Amelia Earhart’s missing Lockheed 10-E Electra plane in the Pacific Ocean continues after promising images of a plane released in January turned out to be a pile of plane-shaped rocks.
The anomaly was first spotted under the sea about 100 miles (161 kilometers) from Howland Island, where Earhart was expected to land more than 87 years ago.
But revisiting the site in early November showed that the object was a real rock formation, rather than a sunken plane.
“Talk about the biggest atrocity ever created by nature,” said Tony Romeo, CEO of research firm Deep Sea Vision. “It’s like someone put these rocks in a tiny little shape of his plane, just to confuse someone out there looking for him.”
All over the world
A dusty and possibly dust-like ring can be seen around the star WOH G64 in the first close-up of stars outside our galaxy. – K. Ohnaka et al./ESO
Astronomers have captured an unprecedented image of a star far beyond our galaxy, and shocking observations reveal what may be its final throes.
The bright red star, called WOH G64, is about 160,000 light-years from Earth in the Large Magellanic Cloud, which orbits the Milky Way. A close-up image shows an egg-shaped cone of dust and gas surrounding the star, as well as a donut-shaped ring of dust.
Supermassive red stars graze the outer layers before they explode. “If that’s what we’re seeing (WOH G64) doing, then a show is in store for us soon,” said Jacco van Loon, Keele Observatory director at the UK’s Keele University.
And some astronomers think the explosion will be visible from Earth when it happens.
Other countries
Earth may have sported a rocky ring – similar to Saturn’s – 466 million years ago, according to new research.
During that time, our planet experienced many impacts from meteorites, many within 30 degrees of the equator, which led some scientists to believe that they were impacting the earth after rain from what could have been a ring.
The hypothesis may also help researchers determine why the Earth experienced the world’s coldest deep freeze, which may have been caused by the shadow cast from the rings.
In contrast, Kelly and Zach Weinersmith, authors of the recent book “A City on Mars,” show that many problems, including fertility, will destroy the goal of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to settle the red planet within the next 30 years.
Trailblazers
A 3D printed image of a developing skeleton showing cartilage and bone. – A.Chédotal/R. Blain, Institut de la Vision, Paris/MeLiS UCBL HCL, Lyon
Thousands of scientists have analyzed more than 100 million cells from more than 10,000 people to make a leap forward in understanding the human body.
It’s part of a mission to create an atlas of every cell type we have – which is quite a task considering that each person has more than 37 trillion cells.
Research teams have uncovered information about an organ that influences the function of the immune system, mapped all the cells in the stomach, and created a blueprint for how skeletons are formed in the womb.
“The problem we had is that we didn’t know enough about cells to understand how the differences and changes in our genes are affecting the disease. When we have this map, we can better find the causes of diseases,” said Mr. Aviv Regev, founding chairman of the Human Cell Atlas.
Explorations
Traveling this weekend? These fun readings will help fill the time:
– SpaceX has canceled an expected launch of a rocket booster after launching the sixth Starship test, just weeks after performing the test for the first time. But the spacecraft is still achieving new goals on its short journey.
– A well-preserved dagger handle in the shape of a gladiator has been unearthed at Hadrian’s Wall in northeast England, and is a rare find that sheds light on the reputation of the ancient Roman warrior.
– The Solar Orbiter mission captured new images showing the solar flare and the highest view of the visible surface of the sun ever seen.
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