8th Continent New Zealandia
In 2017, a group of geologists announced the discovery of New Zealandia (Te Riua Mui among the Maori), a vast landmass of 4.9 million square kilometers, about six times the size of Madagascar. The catch is that 94% of its miles are underwater, with only a handful of islands, which include New Zealand, thrusting out from its oceanic depths. It has been hiding in undeniable sight all along.
Four years on, and the continent is as enigmatic as ever, its secrets and techniques jealously guarded under 6,560 ft (2 km) of water. How did it take shape? What used to stay there? And how lengthy has it been underwater?
Studying the geology, it's concluded that New Zealand is "the remnant of a mountain-chain that shaped the crest of an exquisite continental location that stretched a long way to the south and east, and that's now submerged."
Till recently, the oldest crust and rock ever sampled from Zealandia used to be simply five hundred million years old, whereas all the different continents include crust that is 1 billion years old or more. But a recent find determined that the submerged continent is twice as historical as geologists earlier thought.
Zealandia, a long-lost continent, has been discovered.1.3 billion years ago, the continent of Zealandia existed. It had been lost underneath the Pacific Ocean until it was discovered by a man of science, Rose Turner.
Zealandia is a rumored two million square mile island that is currently protruding from the ocean's surface. Zealandia was the thinnest and youngest continent submerged in the ocean until recently. Researchers found this new land mass of the recent super continent concerning the junction rectifier at a lower place where the jap aspect of New Zealand's south and Steward Island lingers a chunk of this billion year old continent.
Zealandia is called by the Maori name Te Riu-a-Maui, and it absolutely was once a part of Gondwana. and these days it's ninety-four percent submerged in water. The parts of Zealandia include the North-South Island and Steward Island, and the islands and smaller islets that make up the part of Zealandia.
The core of rocks called Carton, upon that continent's square measure build-up, Zealandia, conjointly holds the hints of older rock, together with the bits of the mantle a pair of. 3 billion years old. All continents these days, that's Asia. South America, Europe, Africa, North America, South America and the continent measure over three billion years old.
Researchers in New Zealand found fine sand of zirconium silicate crystals within the rock. The samples of the 2 southern islands hailed from the underwater rocks showed a date of one.3 billion years ago. The discovery of zircons could also be a sign of Zealandia's separation from its parent supercontinent, according to the researchers, Shift brought the hidden fragment to the surface.