Discover a small continent hidden under lava in the islands of Reunion and Mauritius

(Reoctv) - Both Reunion and Mauritius are popular tourist destinations. Recently scientists have discovered that these islands are 'hiding' a tiny continent, the continent has now been discovered.

The continental fragment known as Mauritia split about 60 million years ago while Madagascar and India drifted to both sides, and were submerged under giant lava.

Such small continents in the oceans appear to be more common than previously thought, a study reported in the latest issue of Nature Geoscience.

Breakage of continents often involves mantle beams: Huge bubbles of lava rock increase from deep mantle and soften tectonic plates from below, until these tectonic plates burst at hot spots. This is how East Gondwana was separated about 170 million years ago. At first, a part was separated, then further divided into Madagascar, India, Australia and Antarctica, then drifted to their current position.

Mantle beams currently under the islands of Marion and Reunion appear to play an important role in the emergence of the Indian Ocean.

If the ruptured zone is at the edge of a continental mass (in the case of Madagascar / India), the fragments of this continental plate can be separated. Seychelles is a famous example of a continental piece.

A group of geologists from Norway, South Africa, Britain and Germany published a study based on studies of lava sand taken from Mauritius beach. These grains contain semi-precious zircon minerals dating from between 660 and 1970 million years old, which is explained by the fact that zircon is brought about by lava when it erupts from below the continental layer of the period. this.

This method of date determination is supplemented by recalculations of plate tectonics, helping explain exactly how and where debris stops in the Indian Ocean.

Dr. Bernhard Steinberger of the GFZ Center for German Studies, Geological Sciences and Dr. Pavel Doubrovine of the University of Oslo calculates hot spot traces: "On the one hand, it shows the position of the array related to two points hot at the time of the break, these points towards a causal relationship, " Steinberger said.

On the other hand, we can see that continental fragments continue to drift almost exactly through the Reunion beam, which explains how they were covered with volcanic rocks. So, what was once said to be traces of Reunion hotspots, continental fragments that were not previously recognized because they were covered by the volcanic rock of Reunion. Therefore, the fact that there are many smaller continents in the ocean than previously thought.