100 Million Years Old, 10 Tonnes Heavier Than Dippy The Diplodocus, And Discovered By Locals A Decade Ago: Meet Nagatitan Chaiyaphumensis, The Last Titan Dinosaur
According to a study published in Scientific Reports, scientists have identified a new species of sauropod dinosaur unearthed in northeast Thailand, estimated to have weighed approximately 27 tonnes, the equivalent of nine adult Asian elephants and stretched 88 feet in length. It is the largest dinosaur ever found in Southeast Asia.
The species has been named Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis, after the Naga, a mythological serpent-like creature found across Asian cultures and deeply embedded in northeastern Thai Buddhism, and titan, a giant in Greek mythology. Lead researcher Thitiwoot Sethapanichsakul, a Thai PhD student working with University College London, described the creature as weighing at least 10 tonnes more than Dippy the Diplodocus, the enormous composite cast previously displayed at London’s Natural History Museum.
The first remains were unearthed a decade ago by locals in the Chaiyaphum region, but excavation was not completed until 2024. The Nagatitan roamed the region between 100 and 120 million years ago, at a time when its largest natural predator was a relative of Carcharodontosaurus measuring 26 feet and weighing 3.5 tonnes. “At full size, Nagatitan likely had very little to fear in terms of predation,” Sethapanichsakul told Reuters. A life-size reconstruction is now on display at Bangkok’s Thainosaur Museum.
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