Part 4 of Our Story….Zapping Fossils

The chemical ghost of Confuciusornis can slowly be sifted from the sands of time for the first time in 125 million years.  Using synchrotron light that is brighter than a million suns, we can carefully tease out the chemical inventory of this prehistoric bird without damaging a feather on its head.  When we map the distribution and concentration of each element in a fossil, we can start piece together clues on the biology and burial history of this ancient bird and other animals that died millions of years ago. We can bring to light the composition of feathers, skin, scales and other features that cannot be seen with the naked eye.