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prosauropod dinosaur, project prosauropod
 Become part of Project Prosauropod and watch as researchers uncover the 200 million year old skeleton of a prosauropod dinosaur.  Check in every week to see what  discoveries have been made, as well as new animations and photographs of this important specimen.
 
Please note that Project Prosauropod updates will soon come to an end.  Look for a new, stream-lined version of this site that will take you through the entire project in only a few pages and will conclude with a name for our new genus of prosauropod dinosaur!
 
    August 17, 2007

Project Homepage
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Skeleton Map
 
 

The bones in the image below will be filled in during the project.

Bones currently being worked are blue.     Bones completely removed are red.

prosauropod dinosaur skeleton
 
 

Current Lab Update

Sandstone Block
Unidentified
  • The technician is working on a small section that was originally contained within a larger block.
Removed piece.
  • This small section is still unknown, and a lot of sandstone will need to be removed before the bone can be identified.
Vertebra and Unidentified Bones
Vertebra
vertebra
Bone
  • As more of the unidentified bone (above right) is exposed, a strong consolidant must be used to strengthen it.
  • (Top Left) The spinal canal of a prosauropod vertebra is visible. As the sandstone is needed to support the fossil it is impossible to see all the way through the canal.
  • This vertebra has a counter part which will be re-attached after it is properly prepared and consolidated.
Rib Bone
Technician
  • The technician works on a rib bone. This bone is possibly a rib below the belly of a prosauropod which is not attached to a vertebra, a gastralia.

Rib
  • Basalt is visible on one end of the bone. This volcanic rock has weathered in the cliff until it is actually softer than the sandstone around the bone.
  • Vinac 35% has been used to strengthen one end of the rib as the bone is very fragile when the surrounding sandstone is removed.
Prosauropod Vertebra
Sketching
  • An accurate record must be kept of each fossil that is prepared. Here a technician records her daily progress on the bone.
  • A sketch of the fossil will help with any future work on the piece.
Sketch

Vertebra
Vertebra
  • More work has been done on this prosauropod vertebra to expose new surfaces. Vinac is applied to the surfaces to protect them from being damaged.
  • Some of the sections of bone are extremely thin as a result of faulting.  These bones must be left in sandstone to prevent breakage.


Questions and Answers Schools
Email your questions to DinoProj@gov.ns.ca
When submitting a question please provide
your name, age, and school name (if you are a student).




Check the Q&A Archive to see the answers to previous questions.
Is your school watching us?
We are trying to reach as many students, from as many different schools as possible.  Whether you are in elementary, public, private, high school or university, we want to hear from you!
 
Project Prosauropod staff welcome Gables Elementary, Columbus, Ohio to our web site.  We hope you have an opportunity to look back on some of our progress so far.

Please send us an email with your school name and city, and we will include your school in the list of schools that are following our progress.

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August 17, 2007. 
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