Making the coverscience”a very famous American scientific journal,This almost never happens to any researcher.“Smiles Abdul Razzaq Albani. However, that is what happened to this geologist from the University of Poitiers and his team. A great reward after that. Years of work and an amazing discovery He and his team uncovered the existence of “Marine Pompeii”.
In Morocco, the international group he heads has discovered rocks of inestimable value: researchers have discovered inside Specimens of a trilobite, a type of small shrimp that lived 515 million years ago. Which is known to scientists. But the main point: these samples are the best preserved in the world. And if they have come down to us, it is thanks to an amazing preservation: very high levels of volcanic ash.
Unprecedented preservation
“What is very important in this story of volcanic ash is that it froze the individual very quickly and immediately, and he did not move for 515 million years.Abdul Razzaq Albani smiles. And why “marine Pompeii”? Simply because these specimens were found in the water.
After being frozen instantly and trapped for 515 million years, the rocks have been preserved. Very high levels of detail for this trilobite.. Information that can be reconstructed after rocks pass through a X-ray machine Which is located at the University of Poitiers:“We were able to see really beautiful things, like the little hairs at the end of the legs. But also the soft tissue that was preserved, like the upper lip on the mouth, which was unknown until then.” Arnaud Mazurier, who worked on the study, explains.
Better understanding of our origins
This discovery, after years of work, is excellent news for the scientist Abdul Razzaq Al-Albani:We can now Study the chemistry of the environment in which trilobites evolved best. This gives us clues about our world at that time.The geologist hopes that volcanic ash will now become of greater interest to researchers: its amazing preservation could reveal many other secrets.
Abdelrazak Albani, who has just been awarded the Legion of Honor. He is among the July 14 promotion by decree published on Tuesday, July 9 in the Official Gazette.
