New Map Reveals Earth's 8th Continent; About Half The Size of Australia: Check Name & Other Details!

We all grew up studying that earth is known to have seven continents which are North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and Antarctica but not to a team of scientists, who disagree with this statement.

They discovered that a previously unknown land mass - submerged around 3,500 feet under the south Pacific is the eighth continent named as Zealandia. 

As per Business Insider report, this continent - Zealandia has been hidden for centuries, and was once a part of the same land mass as Antarctica and Australia before breaking off 85 million years ago.

Recently, New Zealand’s research institute, GNS Science, published two new maps and an interactive website where people can explore this new continent. The team of scientists found that this continent was underwater and the massive sunken landmass should be classified as Earth’s eighth continent.

The continent still has almost 95 percent of its total landmass underwater, Business Insider further reports.  

Meanwhile, a report in New Atlas claims that with New Zealand and New Caledonia as its only two above-water landmasses, Zealandia is around one-third smaller than the continent of Australia. This continent was home to dinosaurs and is about half the size of Australia. 

The new maps on GNS Science explore dinosaurs once roamed this place. The 1.9-million-square-mile (4.9-million-sq-km) tectonic profile of Zealandia is depicted on the tectonic map that generates a detailed picture of the ocean floor, the report further adds.