This is a discovery that is more than 34 million years old. Find out the details.
A group of scientists found new evidence that change everything that was believed about Antarctica. This is an impressive discovery in one of the most remote and mysterious regions of the planet, dating back more than 34 million years in the past.
This is a “ancient river system” on the continent, discovered by a group of German researchers from the University of Bremen, in collaboration with the Alfred Wegener Institute and other British, Irish and Swedish institutes. Find out the details.
Antarctica
The 40 million year old discovery in Antarctica
Science Advances announced that experts confirmed the existence of a subglacial river hidden beneath the ice sheet for more than 40 million years.
The studies carried out showed a stratified pattern very similar to that of a river delta, as could be seen, for example, in the Mississippi River in the United States. Certain biomarkers of freshwater cyanobacteria were also analyzed in these sediments, which allowed support that an ancient river once ran through the Antarctic continent.
The team used ice-penetrating radar and sonar techniques to understand the topography of the hidden landscape. In this way they found a small island buried almost two kilometers below the surface, with blocks of land separated by valleys. This led scientists to the theory that There could be a hidden continent beneath Antarctica.
This finding may provide critical information on how these modifications can affect global ocean and climate systems.
Source: Ambito
