A minke whale surfacing. (Credit: Graeme Snow/Shutterstock) How do you get inside a whale's head? With a CT-scanner made for rocket bodies, that's how. Researchers from San Diego State University stuck an entire juvenile minke whale inside a computed tomography (CT) scanning machine to virtually slice and dice its anatomy with X-rays. Their goal was to get a look at the structures that allow whales to hear underwater and better understand a sense that's vital for these underwater mammals.
In the ocean, sight can only get you so far. In dim, murky ocean waters, sound offers much better insights into the environment. Dolphins and toothed whales use a version of sonar to visualize their underwater environment, and baleen whales like the minke whale use sound to both communicate and possibly to keep an ear out for potential threats. Unlike us, whales don't really rely on their ear canals to pick ...
