Dakota Dinosaur Mummy – Pictures of the mummified dinosaur found in North Dakota by teenager Tyler Lawson which is the best preserved dinosaur mummy ever found.

Here is what the Dakota dinosaur mummy looked like:Dakota Dinosaur Mummy

A partially mummified hadrosaur discovered in North Dakota in 1999 and nicknamed “Dakota”, may be the most complete dinosaur ever found, with intact skin that shows evidence of stripes and perhaps soft tissue, researchers said on Monday.

Dakota dinosaur mummified skin

The fossilized duckbilled hadrosaur is so well preserved that scientists have been able to calculate its muscle mass and learn that it was more muscular than thought, probably giving it the ability to outrun predators such as T. Rex.

While they call it a dino mummy, the dinosaur is not really preserved like mummies such as King Tut were. The dinosaur body is fossilized into stone. Unlike the collections of bones found in museums, this hadrosaur came complete with skin, ligaments, tendons and possibly some internal organs, according to researchers who performed a high-tech autopsy.

Dakota dinosaur autopsy performed at Boeing

The study is not yet complete, but scientists have concluded that hadrosaurs were bigger — 3 1/2 tons and up to 40 feet long — and stronger than had been known, were quick and flexible and had skin with scales that may have been striped.

“Oh, the skin is wonderful,” paleontologist Phillip Manning of Manchester University in England rhapsodized, admitting to a “glazed look in my eye.”

“It’s unbelievable when you look at it for the first time,” he said in a telephone interview. “There is depth and structure to the skin. The level of detail expressed in the skin is just breathtaking.”

Manning said there is a pattern of banding to the larger and smaller scales on the skin. Because it has been fossilized researchers do not know the skin color. Looking at it in monochrome shows a striped pattern, and in modern reptiles, such a pattern is often associated with color change.

Dakota Dino Mummy

The fossil was found in 1999 in North Dakota and now is nicknamed “Dakota.” The dinosaur mummy is being analyzed in the world’s largest CT scanner, operated by the Boeing Co. The machine usually is used for space shuttle engines and other large objects. Researchers hope the technology will help them learn more about the fossilized insides of the creature.

“It’s a definite case of watch this space,” Manning said. “We are trying to be very conservative, very careful.”

Dakota dinosaur uncovered

The discovery, excavation and analysis of the mummified dinosaur is featured in ‘Dino Autopsy,’ premiering December. 9, at 9 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT on the National Geographic Channel.

A children’s book, “Dino Mummy: The Life, Death, and Discovery of Dakota, a Dinosaur From Hell Creek,” goes on sale Tuesday.

And that’s the latest news on the Dakota dinosaur mummy.

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