Submerged continent Zealand was once part of the same landmass that Antarctica and Australia. And 85 million years ago it split and eventually plunged into the ocean, leaving only a tiny piece of the surface of New Zealand.
New Zealand research Institute GNS Science has created interactive maps that cover the entire surface of Zealand, thereby telling the origin story of the missing continent.
On the website you can see different types of cards that overlap or switch between them. For example, you can find both ancient and still active volcanoes or to see where on land still look massive mountain ranges.
The idea that this area was once a full-fledged continent has existed for several years. The study of this region showed that this is not just a group of Islands and continental crust, and is large enough to officially be named a separate continent.
In the beginning Zealand was part of Gondwana supercontinent, which included Africa, South America, Antarctica, Australia, New Zealand, and Arabia, Madagascar and the Indian subcontinent. About 85 million years ago, Gondwana was separated Zealand. Drifting, shifting of the land, about the size of half of Australia, was home to dinosaurs and lush tropical forests.
Over millions of years, tectonic plates have started to change and these geological changes created the Pacific ring of fire — belt in the ocean, where the most active volcanoes in the world. So, the Pacific plate dipped below the continental crust Zealand. This process has led to the fact that the root zone of the continent broke away and sank.
Now about 94% of the territory of Zealand is under water, but some parts of the continent were still land. In the first place is New Zealand, New Caledonia, Norfolk Island and other small Islands.
