astronomy

María Páramo

María Páramo is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand María Páramo rather than just read about it. In short: María Euridice Páramo Fonseca (1963 – 5 January 2025) was a Colombian paleontologist and geologist. She contributed to paleontology in Colombia in the fields of describing various Cretaceous marine reptiles, most notably the mosasaurs Eonatator and Yaguarasaurus, the ichthyosaur Kyhytysuka, and the plesiosaurs Leivanectes and Stenorhynchosaurus.

Key takeaways

María Páramo belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect María Páramo to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of María Páramo from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

María Euridice Páramo Fonseca (1963 – 5 January 2025) was a Colombian paleontologist and geologist. She contributed to paleontology in Colombia in the fields of describing various Cretaceous marine reptiles, most notably the mosasaurs Eonatator and Yaguarasaurus, the ichthyosaur Kyhytysuka, and the plesiosaurs Leivanectes and Stenorhynchosaurus.

Life and career

In 1991, Páramo obtained her BSc. degree from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia with a dissertation titled Posición Sistemática de un reptil marino con base en los restos fósiles encontrados en capas del Cretácico Superior en Yaguará, Huila and her PhD degree in 1997 from the Université de Poitiers with a thesis Les Vertébrés marins du Turonien de la Vallée Supérieure du Magdalena, Colombie, Systématique, Paléoécologie et Paléobiogéographie. With "Mention d'Honneur avec félicitations" for doctoral thesis. María Páramo lectured and conducted research in the Department of Geosciences at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá since 2006. Páramo helped establish a foundation for the preservation and rescue of fossils in the region of Colombia, along with other researchers and contributors. Páramo, together with fellow paleontologist Fernando Etayo, collaborated in describing the first dinosaur fossil found in Colombia, Padillasaurus leivaensis from the Paja Formation, close to Villa de Leyva, Boyacá. Other species described by Páramo are the mosasaur Eonatator coellensis from Coello, Tolima, the pliosaur Stenorhynchosaurus munozi, and ichthyosaur Platypterigius sachicarum (now Kyhytysuka sachicarum) from the Paja Formation, Platypterygius, fossil fish species Bachea huilensis from the Villeta Group, and Gomphotheres from Pleistocene beds close to Cartagena. One of the most complete discoveries in South America, the mosasaur Yaguarasaurus columbianus from the La Frontera Formation, Huila, is mainly found in South America, but has been identified globally. Along with Fonseca, in 2000, she collected the tooth of a mosasaur found in layers of the Turonian of the Villeta Formation." Páramo published in Spanish, French and English. She died on 5 January 2025

Works This is a list of publications.

Articles 2019 – A new late Aptian elasmosaurid from the Paja Formation, Villa de Leiva, Colombia 2018 – Appendicular remains of an ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur from the lower Barremian of Villa de Leiva, Colombia 2016 – Stenorhynchosaurus munozi, gen. et sp. nov. a new pliosaurid from the Upper Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of Villa de Leiva, Colombia, South America 2013 – Eonatator coellensis nov. sp. (Squamata: Mosasauridae), a new species from the Upper Cretaceous of Colombia 2012 – Mosasauroids from Colombia 2007 – The first Late Pleistocene record of Kinosternon (Cryptodira:Kinosternidae) turtles for Northern South America, Pubenza locality, Colombia 2001 – Los peces de la familia Pachyrhizodontidae (Teleostei) del Turoniano del Valle Superior del Magdalena, Colombia, dos nuevas especies 2000 – Yaguarasaurus columbianus (Reptilia, Mosasauridae), a primitive mosasaur from the Turonian (Upper Cretaceous) of Colombia 1998 – Platypterigius sachicarum (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria), nueva especie del Cretácico de Colombia 1997 – Bachea huilensis nov. gen., nov. sp., premier Tselfatioidei (Teleostei) de Colombie

See also Geology of the Altiplano Cundiboyacense Geology of the Eastern Hills of Bogotá Bogotá Formation Paja Formation La Frontera Formation Fernando Etayo

References

Notable works by Páramo Páramo Fonseca, María Euridice; O'Gorman, José Patricio; Gasparini, Zulma; Padilla, Santiago; Parra Ruge, Mary Luz (2019), "A new late Aptian elasmosaurid from the Paja Formation, Villa de Leiva, Colombia", Cretaceous Research, in press: _, retrieved 9 March 2019 Páramo Fonseca, María Eurídice (2018), "Restos apendiculares de un ictiosaurio oftalmosáurido del Barremiano inferior de Villa de Leiva, Colombia", Boletín de Geología, 40: 15–30, doi:10.18273/revbol.v40n1-2018001, retrieved 6 February 2019 Páramo, María E.; Gómez Pérez, Marcela; Noé, Leslie F.; Etayo, Fernando (2016), "Stenorhynchosaurus munozi, gen. et sp. nov. a new pliosaurid from the Upper Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of Villa de Leiva, Colombia, South America", Revista de la Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, 40 (154): 84–103, doi:10.18257/raccefyn.239, retrieved 1 June 2017 Carballido, José L.; Pol, Diego; Parra Ruge, Mary L.; Padilla Bernal, Santiago; Páramo Fonseca, María E.; Etayo Serna, Fernando (2015), "A new Early Cretaceous brachiosaurid (Dinosauria, Neosauropoda) from northwestern Gondwana (Villa de Leiva, Colombia)", Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 35 (5) e980505, Bibcode:2015JVPal..35E0505C, doi:10.1080/02724634.2015.980505, retrieved 1 June 2017 Páramo Fonseca, María Euridice (2013), "Eonatator coellensis nov. sp. (Squamata: Mosasauridae), a new species from the Upper Cretaceous of Colombia" (PDF), Revista Académica Colombiana de Ciencias Naturales, XXXVII: 499–518, retrieved 1 June 2017 Páramo Fonseca, María Euridice; Escobar Quemba, Ingrid Carolina (2010), "Restos mandibulares de mastodonte encontrados en cercanías de Cartagena, Colombia" (PDF), Geología Colombiana, 35: 50–57, retrieved 1 June 2017 Páramo Fonseca, María Euridice (2001), "Los peces de la familia Pachyrhizodontidae (Teleostei) del Turoniano del Valle Superior del Magdalena", Boletín Geológico, 39 (1–3): 51–83, doi:10.32685/0120-1425/bolgeol39.1-3.2001.190 Páramo Fonseca, María Euridice (2000), "Yaguarasaurus columbianus (Reptilia, Mosasauridae), a primitive mosasaur from the Turonian (Upper Cretaceous) of Colombia", Historical Biology, 14 (1–2): 121–131, Bibcode:2000HBio...14..121P, doi:10.1080/10292380009380560, retrieved 1 June 2017 Páramo, María E (1998), "Platypterygius sachicarum (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria) nueva especie del Cretácico de Colombia", Revista INGEOMINAS, 6: 1–12 Páramo, María (1997), "Bachea huilensis nov. gen., nov. sp., premier Tselfatioidei (Teleostei) de Colombie", Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences, Série IIA, 325 (2): 147–150, Bibcode:1997CRASE.325..147P, doi:10.1016/S1251-8050(97)83976-6, retrieved 1 June 2017

External links (in Spanish) Presentation by María Páramo

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with María Páramo

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what María Páramo claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to María Páramo before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about María Páramo ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of María Páramo

In research: María Páramo appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses María Páramo in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: María Páramo is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1963 births, 2025 deaths, Colombian geologists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for María Páramo outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study María Páramo in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what María Páramo means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain María Páramo out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is María Páramo in simple terms?

Why does María Páramo matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study María Páramo?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on María Páramo.