Frozen Flower Dating to Dinosaur Times Uncovered

Frozen Flower Dating to Dinosaur Times Uncovered
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Frozen Flower Dating to Dinosaur Times Uncovered

Frozen Flower Dating to Dinosaur Times Uncovered

A spectacular flower that bloomed when dinosaurs ruled the Earth has been unveiled – frozen in time. The new plant preserved in amber is captured in exquisite detail, looking "like a sunburst." It has been hailed a holiday beauty for 2020.

Named Valviloculus pleristaminis, it became entombed in the sticky sap of a tropical tree that hardened into a transparent shell. Known as Burmese amber, it opened a window into prehistoric lost worlds. The biggest land animals that ever lived still had 35 million years to go as planetary overlords when Valviloculus grew. According to The Metro, they are known to have eaten flowers.

Lead author Professor George Poinar of Oregon State University said: "This isn't quite a Christmas flower but it is a beauty, especially considering it was part of a forest that existed 100 million years ago."

Amber excels at preserving the finer points of plants and animals. On contact, resin seeps into tissues, protecting against fungus and rot while also drying them out. Asia is rich in dinosaur fossils – with specimens including Velociraptor and neck-frilled Dilophosaurus of Jurassic Park fame.

Prolf Poinar is an international expert in using plant and animal life forms preserved in amber to learn more about the biology and ecology of the distant past.

"The male flower is tiny, about two millimeters across, but it has some 50 stamens arranged like a spiral, with anthers pointing toward the sky. Despite being so small, the detail still remaining is amazing. Our specimen was probably part of a cluster on the plant that contained many similar flowers, some possibly female," he explained.



Japan Launches Climate Change Monitoring Satellite

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) H2A rocket is seen at the lauch pad before its 50th and final launch at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, 28 June 2025. EPA/JIJI PRE/JIJI PRESS
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) H2A rocket is seen at the lauch pad before its 50th and final launch at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, 28 June 2025. EPA/JIJI PRE/JIJI PRESS
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Japan Launches Climate Change Monitoring Satellite

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) H2A rocket is seen at the lauch pad before its 50th and final launch at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, 28 June 2025. EPA/JIJI PRE/JIJI PRESS
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) H2A rocket is seen at the lauch pad before its 50th and final launch at Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan, 28 June 2025. EPA/JIJI PRE/JIJI PRESS

Japan on Sunday launched a satellite monitoring greenhouse gas emissions using its longtime mainstay H-2A rocket, which made its final flight before it is replaced by a new flagship designed to be more cost competitive in the global space market.

The H-2A rocket lifted off from the Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan, carrying the GOSAT-GW satellite as part of Tokyo’s effort to mitigate climate change.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which operates the rocket launch, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, will hold a news conference later Sunday to give further details of the flight.

Sunday's launch marked the 50th and final flight for the H-2A, which has served as Japan’s mainstay rocket to carry satellites and probes into space with near-perfect record since its 2001 debut. After its retirement, it will be fully replaced by the H3, which is already in operation, as Japan's new main flagship, The Associated Press reported.

The launch follows several days of delay due to malfunctioning in the rocket’s electrical systems.

The GOSAT-GW, or Global Observing SATellite for Greenhouse gases and Water cycle, is a third series in the mission to monitor carbon, methane and other greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere.

Japan sees a stable, commercially competitive space transport capability as key to its space program and national security, and has been developing two new flagship rockets as successors of the H-2A series — the larger H3 with Mitsubishi, and a much smaller Epsilon system with the aerospace unit of the heavy machinery maker IHI. It hopes to cater to diverse customer needs and improve its position in the growing satellite launch market.