The weekly weird

Published August 28, 2021

Fish with human-like teeth

A North Carolina angler’s catch is going viral after a Facebook post revealed he reeled in a fish with a mouth full of human-like teeth.

Jennette’s Pier, in Nags Head, posted photos showing angler Nathan Martin posing with the nine-pound sheepshead fish.

“It’s a very good fight when you’re fighting on the line, it’s a really good catch, and it tastes very good,” Martin said.

Sheepshead fish are known for their teeth, which allow them to eat omnivorous diets. They typically are found in coastal areas, including North Carolina.


'**Lightning splits large tree in half**

A large pine tree struck by lightning in California was caught on camera as it split in half at the trunk in the aftermath of the strike.

Michael Bogan captured video of the tree, believed to be at least 200 years old, split in half at the trunk as it burned after it was struck by a bolt of lightning.

“It was a gorgeous 200+ year old healthy tree that had an unlucky day,” Bogan tweeted.

Firefighters visited the scene, near Big Bear Airport, to cut down what was left of the tree.


Possible life-sustaining planet found

Astronomers found signs of a planet that may have a life-supporting atmosphere, according to a study.

The study, published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, focuses on a planetary system named after the star it orbits, L 98-59, according to a press release. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, the team of astronomers found a rocky planet with half the mass of Venus, as well as an ocean world in the solar system 35 light-years away.

Astronomers also found hints that there is a fifth planet in the “habitable zone,” an orbital sweet spot from a star that’s not too hot and not too cold, with the possibility of liquid water on its surface.

Astronomers were able to determine using the radial velocity method that the system’s innermost planet is half the mass of Venus. This is the lightest planet outside the solar system measured using the technique, which calculates the wobble of the star caused by the gravitational tug of its orbiting planets.


Man eats 32,340 Big Macs since 1972

Guinness World Records recognised Donald Gorske, of Fond du Lac, as the record holder for most Big Mac burgers eaten in a lifetime in 1999, and has now broken his own record with a total 32,340.

He averages two of the McDonald’s signature sandwiches a day, and he’s been doing that since 1972. Gorske’s love for the sandwich began when he got his first car.

“I drove straight to McDonald’s, got my first three Big Macs, then got in the car and ate them. At that moment, I said ‘I’m going to probably eat these for the rest of my life.’ I threw the cartons in the back of my seat, and started counting them from day one,” Gorske said.

Gorske keeps healthy by skipping the French fries and walking about six miles every day.

Published in Dawn, Young World, August 21st, 2021

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