Prehistoric subcontinent discovered under the Indian Ocean

The results of a study by scientists published in the journal Nature Geoscience on February 24 said that they had found traces of a microcontinent called Mauritius, hidden under an Indian Ocean island.

The ancient continent of Mauritia, formed in prehistoric times, about 61-83 million years ago after Madagascar separated from India. However, after separation, this continent was covered by a thick layer of lava sediment from volcanoes.

Scientists believe they have found a trace of the Mauritius subcontinent buried under the Indian Ocean. (Source: in2eastafrica.net)

The scientists analyzed beach sands in Mauritius, which contained ancient zircon minerals that were between 660 million and 2 billion years old. The tiny particles of the mineral were an unusual find, buried in the sand and only recently formed under geological conditions of molten rock that was 9 million years old.

Zircon mineral composition has indicated the existence of a subcontinental plate beneath the island of Mauritius. These mineral samples were brought to the surface by recent volcanic activity.

Scientists believe that the floor of the Indian Ocean may be covered with hidden tectonic plates that were fractured and pulled apart when the supercontinent Pangaea broke apart and formed the continents we know today.

The team emphasizes that Mauritia may have formed just like other continental plates, with the only difference being that it is hidden.

The supercontinent Pangaea began to break up into smaller continents about 200 million years ago. During the Jurassic period, 80-130 million years ago, the supercontinent Pangaea split into two parts, the southern continent Gondwana and the northern continent Laurasia.

The Gondwana continent at that time included present-day South America, Africa, Antarctica, Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, India, Madagascar and the Arabian subcontinent, while Laurasia included present-day Europe, Asia (except India and the Arabian subcontinent) and North America./.

According to (Vietnam+) - VT