Satellite image of the week: Argentina's treasure chest

The Giganotosaurus was actually as big as his Name suggests - and one of the largest land-living meat-eater of the earth's history. In front of about a hundred million years, the giant lizard of the South chased after in the area of today's Argentina, in a widely branched river system of their prey. Every day, researchers figured it out, needed the eight-ton Behemoth to the 20 kilograms of meat, in order to keep the legs three to four Times as much as a large lion or Tiger.

The science knows so far, only a single large part, preserved the skeleton of the Giganotosaurus, and otherwise, only fragments exist. They are all from the Argentine province of Neuquén in Northern Patagonia. This, in turn, is named after a river, seen here in an image of the American satellite "Landsat 8". Around 400 kilometers of the Neuquén overcomes a difference in altitude of about 2300 metres, on its way from the Andes into the Atlantic ocean.

In a part of Bahis Siteleri the deep Canyon through the Neuquén cuts the sedimentary rock of the Region - it is the Rock that the paleontologist always exciting finds. Particularly important for the researchers, the reddish color of the Candeleros Formation, which is seen in this image.

The corresponding rock layers are part of up to 300 meters thick. Here, scientists have discovered not only fish, crocodiles and turtles, but next to the Giganotosaurus, other huge prehistoric reptiles as the herbivorous Andesaurus and Limaysaurus.

But it's not just for fossil fans, the Geology of the area is interesting, but also for Oil and gas finder. In the deeper Formation, Vaca Muerta (Dead cow) have geologists identified a huge shale oil and Shale gas deposits. It dates from the time when the area was around 150 million years ago on the floor of the ocean.

Known to exist since the last century, but it is exploited only since this decade. Thereby, holes and the so-called Fracking including horizontal, in case of the strong pressure of oil - or gas-containing rock layers in the subsurface be thrown open.

the volume Of the Deposits has the potential to allow Argentina to ascend to the major Oil and gas producers in the world, but in practice, the flow rates are still relatively low. This has to do with the high costs of extraction.

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