The Dunkleosteus was a 10-metre (33 feet) long marine monster powerful enough to bite a shark in two when it was feeling peckish and fancied a snack. It lived around 400 million years ago and was munching on other animals long before dinosaurs appeared. Scientists in the US used a fossil of the Dunkleosteus' skull and made a model of it in a computer with muscles to show how big its bite was. They worked out it used two bony blades to snap and crush almost anything living in the seas with it. Thank goodness it’s extinct!
However, there are many other animals that could become extinct if we do not care for them and our planet. A very rare big cat is being helped to survive using high-tech equipment which follows its movements from space. A snow leopard has been fitted with a GPS tag, something that signals a satellite to say exactly where it is. These are the kinds of devices that are fitted in cars to tell drivers how to get to a destination. Snow leopards are under threat of being wiped out, and by tracking how they wander about, scientists hope to figure what's needed to protect them. Not much is known about snow leopards, because they live in very remote areas in central Asia and keep to themselves. Experts don't know how much space each leopard needs, and it's hoped this study will find this out, and help efforts to protect them.
December Quiz – it’s behind you!!
Well, OK, not behind you, but it’s definitely up on the Planet Science site. This month it’s a panto themed quiz, but you won’t find cheesy pop tunes and kids in the chorus, nope. Amidst all the fairy dust, magic lanterns and wishy washing we’ve found some actual science! If you (or you plus your family’s combined brains!) get all the questions correct you’ll go into the draw for £50’s worth of theatre tokens, to go towards a theatre trip for you and your family or your mates. Pantotastic!
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