The Greek philosopher Plato first described Atlantis in the year 360 BC. I wasn’t around
then, but ever since, people have been enamored with this lost continent. What happened to
it? What was it like? Did they eat cheeseburgers? Did Atlantis ever even exist at all?
Unfortunately, the answer to that last question is probably no.
Still, there might be some hope, as geologists stumble across lost continents more often
than you might think. Here are three sunken lands that might hold you over until the fish
people turn up. Number One: Greater Adria
We might as well start with the most recent undersea discovery: a sunken continent lost
beneath the waters of the Mediterranean Sea called Greater Adria; and it’s a lot older
than Atlantis is said to be. As you probably remember from elementary school,
all of the Earth’s landmass was once combined into a single massive supercontinent known
as Pangea. About two hundred million years ago, I wasn’t around then, the continent
split in two. The northern half, known as Laurasia, would become Europe, Asia, and North
America. Geologists call the southern landmass Gondwana, and it would eventually split into
what we now know as Africa, South America, Australia, and Antarctica.
While this was happening, a few chunks of what would become Africa decided to jump ship
and head back the way they came. The largest of these chunks would form a continent known
as Greater Adria, so named for its proximity to the modern-day Adriatic Sea, between what
is now Italy and the Balkans. If you’re imagining a vast expanse of land
similar in size to Africa, or at least Australia, you may want to pull back a bit on your expectations.
The continental plate might have been roughly the size of Greenland, King of the Islands,
but was actually divided into several smaller landmasses, similar to the Caribbean. Greater
Adria would’ve been a vast collection of islands and coral atolls separated by shallow
and warm tropical seas. It's too bad that Greater Adria sank almost
two hundred million years before the first proto humans walked the Earth. But I'm sure
the theropods made good use of it. Unfortunately for the dinosaur tourism industry,
Greater Adria didn't stick around. Most of it sank into the Earth's Mantle following
a collision with mainland Europe not long after its formation. Most of the tectonic
plate submerged beneath the one Europe sits on, with the remaining chunks being scooped
up by southern Europe and western Asia. This tectonic collision left lasting marks
on the shape of Europe today. The Apennine Mountain Range, which runs the length of the
boot of Italy, wouldn’t exist without the last vestiges of Greater Adria scraping off
on the bottom of the Alps. Other remnants would end up merging with the coastlines of
Croatia, Greece, and Turkey, meaning that there are still places where you can stand
on a piece of this vanished landmass. Finding this sunken landmass was no easy feat,
and took years of research by geologists from multiple countries. You see, southern Europe
is what experts refer to as “a mess.” That’s not a joke by the way. Doctor Douwe
van Hinsbergen, who led the team that made this discovery, described the region by saying,
“It is quite simply a geological mess: everything is curved, broken, and stacked.”
He contrasted it with the Himalayas, which have relatively few major fault lines stretching
across the region. Europe, meanwhile, is a mess of fragmented geological systems. It
was only through the use of extensive surveys and state of the art computer models that
researchers could guess at what Greater Adria once looked like, as well as where its fragments
ended up. Researchers may even be able to guess at what the region might look like in
the distant future. In addition to making geologists mouth’s
water, locating the fragments of Greater Adria also serves a more practical purpose. Van
Hinsbergen believes that the mountain ranges created by these continental shards could
be unusually rich in mineral deposits. Locating where they ended up could play a significant
role in the future economy of the Mediterranean region.
Number Two: Zealandia Greater Adria may be the most recent sunken
continent to be discovered, but not the only one by far. Aspiring geologists looking for
another lost world might turn their attention to the South Pacific, and the unassuming island
nation of New Zealand. Most people know it for sheep and Lord of
the Rings movies, but this small mountainous country is hiding a huge secret behind its
green valleys and sweeping vistas. New Zealand, like many islands, is little
more than the top of a vast underwater mountain range. What makes it different from other
island groups is the sprawling sunken continent reaching out in all directions from those
central peaks. Known as Zealandia, this submerged landmass
sunk into the Pacific Ocean relatively recently, having underwent its decent a mere twenty-three
million years ago. Zealandia is believed to have broken away
from Australia around sixty to eighty-five million years ago. I wasn’t around then,
but with a total area of over one million square miles, Zealandia is more than half
the size of its parent continent and much larger than Greater Adria.
Another difference between the two is that whereas Greater Adria was more of a group
of islands, Zealandia would’ve been entirely above water at one time. This vast landmass
stretched northwest to southeast, roughly perpendicular to modern New Zealand. Fossil
records even indicate that there may have been animals on the continent before it was
swallowed up by the rising Pacific Ocean at the end of the last ice age.
Notably, if Zealandia had somehow remained above sea level, its size and close proximity
to Australia would have had a significant impact on the other continent's climate. The
warm temperatures of Southeastern Australia are due in large part to the East Australian
Current carrying warm water from the tropics. That’s right, the EAC can shape the landscape
of an entire continent! Dude! If Zealandia were above water, it would interrupt
the EAC, hogging all that tropical warmth for itself like the greedy landmass it is.
This would result in places like Sydney, Australia being much colder and dryer than they are
today. It wouldn't turn southern Australia into an arctic tundra, but the continent might
be more in line with North Dakota than the subtropical paradise we know.
Granted, this would have happened in the midst of an ice age's glacial period. If that were
the case, I imagine everywhere would be a lot colder, not just Australia.
Can you think of any other simple changes to history that would have enormous consequences?
Why don't you head down to the comments and let me know?
Number Three: Doggerland Okay, so I have a confession to make. I’m
kind of playing a bit fast and loose when I call Doggerland a lost continent. Submerged
isthmus just doesn’t have the same ring to it, you know?
What differentiates Doggerland from the first two entries on this list is that it existed
recently enough for humans to have set foot on this lost land. We’re talking about thousands
of years rather than millions. I wasn’t around then, but at its greatest
extent in the year 16,000 BC, this landmass stretched from Denmark to France, and reached
out to envelop the British Isles. It’s named after Dogger Bank, a submerged plateau halfway
between England and Denmark. Thousands of years ago, this bank was part of a sprawling
landmass connecting Britain to Mainland Europe. Modern humans are known to have begun inhabiting
the region between the years of 10,000 and 4,000BC, as evidenced by the discovery of
flint and bone tools on the floor of the English Channel. And let's not forget our closest
biological relatives, the Neanderthals, who inhabited the region around forty thousand
years ago, and a couple of which I went to high school with.
As with all good things, Doggerland eventually came to an end. And as with Zealandia, it
was receding glaciers and rising sea levels that did this landmass in. In this case, they
were likely assisted by a massive tsunami that’s believed to have struck the region
in the 6200s BC, devouring much of the northern coastline.
Dogger Bank managed to hold out a bit longer than the rest of the subcontinent, remaining
above water until at least the year 5000BC. If there’s any good news for Doggerland,
it’s that it’s possibly the most well-known continent on this list. It even warranted
a mention in a story by famed British author H. G. Wells, not something many submerged
landmasses can boast. And before anyone asks, no. As awesome as
it would be, there’s no evidence Doggerland was home to an unusual number of dogs. I wasn’t
around then. Hey, if you learned something new today, then
give the video a like and share it with a friend! And here are some other cool videos
I think you'll enjoy. Just click to the left or right one, and remember: stay on the Bright
Side of life!