A layover on a trip to India began a research odyssey that has led scientists to verify the existence of a "lost continent" below the East African island nation of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. The breakup of a super-continentThat's ancient compared to the oldest volcanic rocks that make up the island, which are just nine million years old at most. The lost continent is part of a super-continent known to scientists as Gondwana, which broke apart into Africa, India, Australia and Antarctica when the Indian Ocean was formed. Critics postulated that the beach zircon could have been transported to Mauritius by wind, waves, vehicle tires, people's shoes — even bird poop. At 2.5 to three billion years old, these samples — brought to the surface through volcanic eruptions — show what has to be a continent, says Ashwal.

Source: CBC News February 02, 2017 22:42 UTC