Mammoth mountain range deep under Antarctica hides a 500-million-year-old secret

Scientists have discovered that an ancient mountain range buried under ice in East Antarctica has not changed a bit in 500 million years. Known as the Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains, they are hidden under a thick blanket of ice. Antarctica has some peaks, such as the Transantarctic Mountains, that pierce through. However, Gamburtsev is completely out of sight, The Conversation reported.

These mountains are similar to the European Alps, having the same scale and shape. But they are buried kilometres deep under the ice. Notably, the highest peak in the Alps is Mont Blanc at 15,778 feet, while 82 other peaks are higher than 13,000 feet. This shows how humongous the mountains buried in Antarctica really are.

Researchers who made the discovery state that the mountains were formed over 500 million years ago. Their study, published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, states that the monstrous mountains were born at the time when the supercontinent Gondwana took shape from colliding tectonic plates.

All mountains are formed when two tectonic plates clash with each other. They change bit by bit over the years. Himalayas continue to rise even today after the process started 50 million years ago. However, Antarctica has been stable for millions of years. The authors also looked into the reason behind this phenomenon in the study.

The first time the mountains were discovered was by a Soviet expedition in 1958. Since then, scientists have struggled to learn more about it. What is puzzling is how such a huge mountain range came to be yet remains safe and hidden inside a continent.

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Mountains formed when Gondwana took shape after collision between two continents

Studies suggest that the crust that forms East Antarctica is from two large continents that were divided by a vast ocean more than 700 million years ago. When these continents collided, the supercontinent of Gondwana was formed. This is also when the Gamburtsev mountain range was born.

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"The collision triggered the flow of hot, partly molten rock deep beneath the mountains," the authors wrote. "As the mountains continued to take shape, the crust thickened and heated, before becoming unstable and collapsing under their own weight." Other forces led the mountains to partially collapse as well.

The researchers analysed tiny zircon grains deposited by rivers flowing from the ancient mountains more than 250 million years ago. This helped them learn the age of the mountains. They discovered that the Gamburtsev Mountains first rose around 650 million years ago. By 580 million years ago, they were equal in height to the Himalayas. Deep crustal melting and flow occurred, which ended around 500 million years ago.