Mississippi
Geologists accidentally found a monstrous mosasaur fossil in Mississippi mud
Mosasaurs were some of the most fearsome apex predators to ever stalk the Cretaceous era’s oceans. And according to Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) geologist James Starnes, a recent vertebrae fossil find belonged to “about as big” a mosasaur specimen as one could get.
“This is a true, true sea monster,” Starnes recently told the local news outlet Hattiesburg American. “This [was] bigger than most dinosaurs walking around on land.”
Multiple mosasaur species swam Earth’s prehistoric waters as recently as 66 million years ago, but the over seven-inch-wide fossil found on April 15 came from Mosasaurus hoffmanii—by far one of the family’s largest species.
“This is a big animal. The maximum [weight] is about 20,000 pounds,” explained Starnes.
Although M. hoffmanii likely grew over 50-feet-long, Starnes and the MDEQ team estimates the vertebrae originated from a creature that was probably more like 30-feet-long. Still, that’s pretty big.
“[B]ig enough to keep most people out of the water if it was swimming around today,” added Mississippi Museum of Natural Science paleontology curator George Phillips.
“People,” however, luckily didn’t enter the evolutionary picture until Homo sapiens arrived roughly 300,000 years ago. As for a mosasaur’s contemporary prey—they rarely stood a chance against the ocean reptile.
While previous theories likened the mosasaur’s underwater maneuvers to present-day sea snakes, recent evidence indicates many of the predators featured large, crescent-shaped tailfin flukes similar to a shark. These would have allowed mosasaurs to quickly ambush their targets instead of chasing them over long distances. Any prey that couldn’t escape were ensnared by their 60-or-so daggerlike teeth, including an extra set on the roofs of their mouths.
Starnes and colleagues found their latest discovery by complete accident. The team was out in the field near Starkville’s Mississippi State University to create a 3D map of local geologic layers when fellow geologist Jonathan Leard realized he misplaced a pile of ancient seashells he had collected. While searching for the missing shells, Starnes noticed a partially exposed bone in the muck. It didn’t take long before it became clear this was something much larger than any seashell. That said, mosasaur didn’t immediately come to mind.
“It was so big, we didn’t think it was a mosasaur,” said Leard. “It might be the biggest one ever collected in Mississippi.”
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Mississippi lawmakers face pressure to counter looming federal cuts to health care after punting this session
Wicker: Mississippi powered Artemis II
Published 4:00 pm Monday, April 20, 2026
For nine days this month, space travel captivated the world. Families gathered around their screens as four astronauts strapped into the Integrity spacecraft docked at the Kennedy Space Center. As the launch countdown ended, four Mississippi-tested RS-45 engines ignited, and the ground shook. Seven seconds later, the Integrity had liftoff. For six intense minutes, the RS-45 engines rocketed the crew into high Earth orbit, sending them on their historic lunar flyby mission.
Mississippi should take a bow. The four RS-45 engines were tested at our very own Stennis Space Center, where Mississippians have been ensuring the quality of rocket engines since the Apollo program. For eight years, engineers, safety managers, and logistics specialists from the state have tested the engines that powered the Integrity and will power future Artemis launches. Their work paid off, and the launch was a marvel of engineering. NASA leadership made special mention of the rocket engine burn, calling it “flawless.”
One Mississippian in particular helped make the mission a success. Hernando native Matthew Ramsey handled a great deal of responsibility as the mission manager for Artemis II. The Mississippi State University graduate helped set the focus for the mission and equip the astronauts and staff for the job. Matthew also served as the deputy of the Mission Management Team, the group of NASA staff that comes together just days before a launch. The team assumes the risks of the mission ahead, and they make tough calls during flight if challenges arise.
As the Artemis II journey progressed, the world could not stop watching. Our social media feeds were full of photos and videos beamed down from the heavens. They captured humorous situations, such as the astronauts adjusting to life without gravity or testing their plumbing skills.
We also witnessed moments of majesty. On the fifth day, the Integrity began using the Moon’s gravity to slingshot our astronauts back home. That trajectory led the crew around the Moon, farther from Earth than any humans have ever gone. As the explorers looked upon outer space, they captured stunning images. Among the most remarkable is Earthset, in which Commander Reid Wiseman photographed Earth as it appeared to fall below the horizon of the moon.
When their spacecraft returned to Earth’s atmosphere, the crew was traveling nearly 35 times faster than the speed of sound. Ten minutes later, a series of parachutes began opening. Eventually, the spacecraft’s speed fell to 20 miles per hour, and the crew splashed down into the Pacific Ocean.
Mississippi was once again there to assist. The astronauts were greeted by the USS John P. Murtha, a U.S. military vessel built in the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula. The ship’s amphibious design was suited to welcome the space travelers home—equipped with a helicopter pad, medical facilities, and the communications system needed to locate and recover the astronauts safely. Crucially, the USS Murtha was built with a well deck, a sea-based garage that stored the Integrity on the journey to shore.
Artemis II was a resounding success, paving the way for planned future flights. When the Artemis program returns humans to the moon, Mississippi will be there every step of the way.
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