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  • No supersonic dinosaur tail

    From Pandora@21:1/5 to All on Fri Dec 9 13:37:04 2022
    Multibody analysis and soft tissue strength refute supersonic dinosaur
    tail.

    Abstract

    Sauropod dinosaurs are well known for their massive sizes and long
    necks and tails. Among sauropods, flagellicaudatan dinosaurs are
    characterized by extreme tail elongation, which has led to hypotheses
    regarding tail function, often compared to a whip. Here, we analyse
    the dynamics of motion of a 3D model of an apatosaurine
    flagellicaudatan tail using multibody simulation and quantify the stress-bearing capabilities of the associated soft tissues. Such an
    elongated and slender structure would allow achieving tip velocities
    in the order of 30 m/s, or 100 km/h, far slower than the speed of
    sound, due to the combined effect of friction of the musculature and articulations, as well as aerodynamic drag. The material properties of
    the skin, tendons, and ligaments also support such evidence, proving
    that in life, the tail would not have withstood the stresses imposed
    by travelling at the speed of sound, irrespective of the conjectural
    ‘popper’, a hypothetical soft tissue structure analogue to the
    terminal portion of a bullwhip able to surpass the speed of sound.

    Open access:
    https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-21633-2

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)
  • From Sight Reader@21:1/5 to Pandora on Tue Dec 20 12:16:38 2022
    Hmm, interesting. So the tail material probably isn’t up to handling being cracked at supersonic speeds, but the speeds it can attain should be enough to smack someone pretty good. I wonder… if the tail was indeed used for defense, might that leave
    some sort of evidence? Perhaps there might be deformations, inflammations or some sort of scarring on the vertebrae that impacted other animals?

    On the other hand, the article makes it sound as if the ends of these tails don’t tend to preserve or fossilize. Are there any at all available for study?

    On Friday, December 9, 2022 at 5:37:05 AM UTC-7, Pandora wrote:
    Multibody analysis and soft tissue strength refute supersonic dinosaur
    tail.

    Abstract

    Sauropod dinosaurs are well known for their massive sizes and long
    necks and tails. Among sauropods, flagellicaudatan dinosaurs are characterized by extreme tail elongation, which has led to hypotheses regarding tail function, often compared to a whip. Here, we analyse
    the dynamics of motion of a 3D model of an apatosaurine
    flagellicaudatan tail using multibody simulation and quantify the stress-bearing capabilities of the associated soft tissues. Such an elongated and slender structure would allow achieving tip velocities
    in the order of 30 m/s, or 100 km/h, far slower than the speed of
    sound, due to the combined effect of friction of the musculature and articulations, as well as aerodynamic drag. The material properties of
    the skin, tendons, and ligaments also support such evidence, proving
    that in life, the tail would not have withstood the stresses imposed
    by travelling at the speed of sound, irrespective of the conjectural ‘popper’, a hypothetical soft tissue structure analogue to the
    terminal portion of a bullwhip able to surpass the speed of sound.

    Open access:
    https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-21633-2

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
    * Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)