Geologists spy an eighth continent: Zealandia

[Kontinuum]

Beneath the waves in the southwest Pacific Ocean lies a mostly hidden realm — dubbed Zealandia — that deserves to be called a continent, geologists say.

Geophysical data suggest that a region spanning 5 million square kilometres, which includes New Zealand and New Caledonia, is a single, intact piece of continental crust and is geologically separate from Australia, a team of scientists from New Zealand, Australia and New Caledonia argue in the March/April issue of GSA Today1.

“If you could pull the plug on the world’s oceans, then Zealandia would probably long ago have been recognized as a continent,” says team leader Nick Mortimer, a geologist at GNS Science in Dunedin, New Zealand.

However, there is no international body in charge of designating official continents, and so the researchers must hope that enough of their colleagues agree to recognize the landmass. Otherwise, their proposal could remain more of a theoretical wish than a radical reshaping of what every child has to learn in geography class.

“The results are pushing us to rethink how broadly we can or should apply the established definition of geological continental landmasses,” says Patricia Durance, a mineral geologist at the GNS Science office in Lower Hutt, New Zealand.

http://www.nature.com/news/geologist...landia-1.21503

[Sykol]

Leave it to New Zealanders to discover new land completely underwater. Now all they have to do is pull that plug on the ocean, no doubt with the help of Poland's screen-door-submarine, and they'll be ready to go.

[Deleted]

Isn't this old news

[Azadina]

I don't think ending the world is worth it for new continent, even if we could pull a plug on oceans.

[Jonnusthegreat]

Pretty sure continent is defined as land mass, not almost land mass.

[Deleted]

It's called Continental Shelf, you silly nilly Zealanders. And there is a international body that regulates the continent shelves, it's the United Nations.

[Sykol]

Pretty sure continent is defined as land mass, not almost land mass.

We'll just call this one a land miss.

Thank you, I'll be here all night.

[Baneth]

Isn't this old news

ehhh kinda sorta. It was proposed sometime around early 2000 to mid 90s (I believe). Its only just this year that its been confirmed.

[Tyrianth]

Pretty sure continent is defined as land mass, not almost land mass.

There actually isn't a universal agreed upon definition of continent.