What if we tell you that the earth has eight and not seven continent? Explore the 8th missing continent that hid from everyone’s eyes.
We learnt and believed that the earth is known to have seven continents stretching out across the planet. However, that might not be the truth. Scientists have discovered an unknown landmass that was submerged around 3,500 feet under the south of the Pacific. No, it is not the Atlantis mentioned in Plato’s works. Instead, it is Zealandia, the lost continent.
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Zealandia – the 8th missing continent
Also known as Te Riu-a-Maui or Tasmantis, it is an entirely immersed mass of continental crust that receded after separating from the Gondwanaland super-continent. According to recent studies, the landmass was submerged around 83 million years ago but still can be differentiated as a separate continent.
Satellite images clearly show it to be almost the size of Australia. With a total landmass of approximately 4,900,000 km2, this continent is substantially larger than any microcontinents or continental fragments. Six times the size of Madagascar, this landmass only fits in the category of a continent.
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The researchers analysed the bathymetry for mapping the shape and depth of the ocean floor around Zealandia. In addition, there was a detailed study over its tectonic profile to precisely locate the landmass around the tectonic-plate boundary. A details maps has now been updated on an interactive website to help people virtually explore the continent.
“We’ve made these maps to provide an accurate, complete, and up-to-date picture of the geology of the New Zealand and southwest Pacific area — better than we have had before,”
Nick Mortimer, lead researcher
Where is this lost continent?
This landmass is near Australia and is mapped around nearly 2 million square miles. This continent is more than half the size of Australia, but only 6 percent of the landmass is above sea level. The part above the sea level makes up New Zealand, the largest landmass on the continent and an island named New Caledonia. Yes, New Zealand is not a part of Australia but this above sea-level landmass.
Political division of this land includes, New Zealand, some Australian islands and New Caledonia, a special collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific Ocean. New Zealand has a population of around 5.4 million, and New Caledonia of around 300,000.