Scientists Spotted Unusual Pink Boulders on Peaks in Antarctica, and Traced Them to a Giant Structure Buried Deep Below
The Daily Galaxy • • science
Key Points:
- Bright pink granite boulders found on the peaks of West Antarctica’s Hudson Mountains have led scientists to discover a massive granite body buried beneath the ice, stretching tens of kilometers below the Pine Island Glacier.
- Radiometric dating revealed the boulders formed around 175 million years ago during the Jurassic period, indicating they originated from an older source distinct from the surrounding younger volcanic rocks.
- Airborne gravity surveys identified a large subglacial granite formation approximately 100 kilometers wide and 7 kilometers thick beneath the southern Hudson Mountains, matching the composition of the surface boulders.
- The granite boulders are classified as glacial erratics, transported to their current high-elevation locations by changing glacier flows over time, providing insights into past ice sheet movements.
- Researchers emphasize that combining geological dating with geophysical data not only solved the mystery of the boulders' origin but also offers valuable information about Antarctica’s ice sheet dynamics and landscape evolution.
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