Scientists have identified a new species of giant long-necked dinosaur from remains unearthed in Thailand. The nagatitan, the largest dinosaur ever found in Southeast Asia, weighed 27 tonnes and measured 27 meters in length, longer than a diplodocus.

A team of researchers from the UK and Thailand identified the species from fossils discovered beside a pond in northeastern Thailand a decade ago. They say the discovery sheds light on how changes in ancient climatic conditions allowed gigantic dinosaurs to develop.

The dinosaur's full name is Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis, with "naga" referring to a serpent in Southeast Asian folklore, "titan" to the gods in Greek mythology, and chaiyaphumensis meaning "from Chaiyaphum", the province where the fossils were found.

It lived between 100 and 120 million years ago — around 40 million years earlier than the tyrannosaurus rex — and is about twice the size of that creature. It roamed Earth when atmospheric carbon dioxide levels were rising in line with high global temperatures.

Thitiwoot Sethapanichsakul, a Thai doctoral student at University College London (UCL), was the lead author of the study published in Scientific Reports. He said the researchers referred to the nagatitan as "the last titan" of Thailand, because the fossils were found in the country's youngest dinosaur-bearing rock formation.

Sethapanichsakul, a self-confessed "dinosaur kid", said in a UCL press release that the study also "fulfils a childhood promise of naming a dinosaur." The nagatitan is the 14th dinosaur to be named in Thailand. Palaeontologist Dr Sita Manitkoon noted that the country has high diversity in dinosaur fossils and is "possibly the third most abundant in Asia in terms of dinosaur remains."

Source: www.bbc.com