Roman GłogulskiResearchers from Griffith University have conducted sonar studies that have allowed them to identify a massive submerged area twice the size of Great Britain off the coast of Australia. This discovery suggests that this area, known as the Australian “Atlantis,” may have been inhabited by up to half a million people.
According to archaeologist Kasih Norman, this area was once part of a paleocontinent that connected modern-day Australia, New Guinea, and Tasmania. Seabed maps have revealed that between 71,000 and 59,000 years ago, sea levels were approximately 40 meters lower than they are today, exposing a vast area of submerged land.
The research has also shown the presence of meandering river channels in the submerged area, indicating that people could have lived there. Norman estimates that this area could have accommodated between 50,000 and half a million people.
Scientists point out that the end of the last Ice Age caused sea levels to rise, forcing the population that inhabited this continental shelf to migrate. Over the past 14,000 years, thousands of square kilometers of land have been flooded by the sea.
Researchers claim that the discovery of this submerged area has significant archaeological importance and may encourage further studies in this region. It also opens up new possibilities for understanding the history and culture of the people who inhabited this area thousands of years ago.
