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Scientists in Brazil say heavy rains helped them discover a fossil they believe came from one of the world’s oldest dinosaurs.
巴西的科学家们表示，暴雨帮助他们发现了一块化石，他们认为这块化石来自世界上最古老的恐龙之一。
Researchers found the fossil in May in Brazil’s southern state of Rio Grande do Sul.
研究人员于五月在巴西南部的南里奥格兰德州发现了这块化石。
They said the fossilized bones make up nearly a complete dinosaur skeleton.
他们表示，这些化石骨骼构成了几乎完整的恐龙骨架。
A leader of the team, paleontologist Rodrigo Temp Müller, said the fossil is believed to be about 233 million years old.
该团队的负责人、古生物学家罗德里戈·坦普·穆勒表示，这块化石据信大约有2.33亿年的历史。
It was discovered next to a body of water in the area of Sao Joao do Polesine.
它是在圣若昂-杜波莱西内地区的一片水域旁边被发现的。
Müller is with Brazil’s Federal University of Santa Maria in Rio Grande do Sul.
穆勒在南里奥格兰德州圣玛丽亚的巴西联邦大学工作。
He said heavy rains in the area had helped speed up the natural process of erosion that led to the discovery.
他说，该地区的暴雨有助于加速自然侵蚀过程，从而导致了这一发现。
Fossils are more likely to get exposed after rains because water washes away the dirt that covers them.
化石更有可能在雨后暴露出来，因为雨水冲走了覆盖它们的污垢。
Details of the discovery have not yet been confirmed by other scientists or published in any scientific publications.
该发现的细节尚未得到其他科学家的证实，也未在任何科学出版物上发表。
The researchers believe the dinosaur lived during the Triassic Period.
研究人员认为这种恐龙生活在三叠纪时期。
The first dinosaurs are thought to have appeared at that time after Earth’s largest mass extinction event about 252 million years ago.
第一批恐龙被认为是在大约2.52亿年前地球最大规模的物种灭绝事件之后出现的。
During the Triassic Period, all continents were part of a single land mass called Pangea.
在三叠纪时期，所有大陆都是一个被称为盘古大陆的单一陆块的一部分。
The team thinks the dinosaur belonged to a group known as Herrerasauridae.
该团队认为，这只恐龙属于一个被称为埃雷拉龙科的群体。
A document received by The Associated Press explains this family of creatures once lived on land that now makes up present-day Brazil and Argentina.
一份由美联社收到的文件解释说，这种生物曾经生活在现在构成今天巴西和阿根廷的土地上。
The document said the size of the bones suggests the dinosaur would have been around 2.5 meters long.
该文件称，这些骨头的大小表明，这只恐龙的体长约为2.5米。
After about four days of excavation work, researchers transported a large piece of rock containing the fossil back to their laboratory. There, they carried out tests.
经过大约四天的挖掘工作，研究人员将一块含有化石的大石头运回了他们的实验室。在那里，他们进行了测试。
At first, Müller said he thought the team had only collected “a few isolated bones.
起初，穆勒说他认为该团队只收集到了“几块孤立的骨头”。
” But after detailed testing, the researchers said they had almost a complete skeleton.
但是经过详细的测试，研究人员表示他们几乎拥有了一具完整的骨架。
Müller told the AP his team was “very excited and surprised” by the discovery.
穆勒告诉美联社，他的团队对这一发现“非常兴奋和惊讶”。
He said the new find might be the second most complete skeleton found for this kind of dinosaur.
他说，这一新发现可能是这种恐龙发现的第二完整的骨架。
The researchers are carrying out studies to see whether the fossil belongs to an already-known species or a new kind. The effort is expected to take several months.
研究人员正在进行研究，以确定该化石属于已知物种还是新物种。这项工作预计需要几个月的时间。
Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state reported record rainfall earlier this year.
巴西南里奥格兰德州今年早些时候报告了创纪录的降雨量。
Officials said the rain caused widespread flooding in May that led to at least 182 deaths.
官员们表示，5月的降雨引发了大范围的洪水，导致至少182人死亡。
Some weather experts say climate change makes extreme weather events more likely.
一些气象专家表示，气候变化使极端天气事件更有可能发生。
They say the burning of oil, gas and coal affects the climate.
他们说石油、天然气和煤炭的燃烧会影响气候。
Müller said other fossils appeared after the heavy rains.
穆勒说，大雨过后出现了其他化石。
He noted these finds had launched a race against time to rescue the materials before they are ruined.
他指出，这些发现引发了一场与时间赛跑的竞赛，要在这些材料被毁坏之前将其抢救出来。
For example, team members in the field said they had observed what appeared to be a leg bone and a pelvis bone.
例如，现场的团队成员表示，他们观察到了似乎是一块腿骨和一块骨盆骨。
But they said these were in danger of being destroyed because of the rain.
但是他们说，这些东西由于下雨，有被毁坏的危险。
Müller hopes the new discovery can help further explain the origins of dinosaurs.
穆勒希望这一新发现能够有助于进一步解释恐龙的起源。
“Having new fossils that are so well preserved certainly helps us better understand this topic that is still much debated,” he said.
“拥有保存如此完好的新化石，肯定有助于我们更好地理解这个仍有很多争议的话题，”他说。
I’m Bryan Lynn.
我是布莱恩·林恩。
