Overview
- Researchers formally described Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis in Scientific Reports, estimating it at about 27 meters long and 27 metric tonnes.
- The fossils were first spotted by a local resident near a community pond in Chaiyaphum province in 2016, with major fieldwork from 2016 to 2019 and new digs in 2024.
- The team from University College London and Thai institutions analyzed limb, spine, rib, and pelvic bones using 3D scans to confirm it as a new sauropod species.
- A life-size reconstruction is on view at Bangkok’s Thainosaur Museum, while the original bones remain under study at a new local research center.
- The animal lived in the Early Cretaceous about 100 to 120 million years ago, extending the known range of giant plant-eaters in Asia and reflecting ecosystems that later gave way to shallow seas.