The mysterious pink sands that appeared off the coast of South Australia opened the door to an important discovery that led scientists to the unknown mountains of Antarctica. Scientists investigating the source of the pink sands found on Petrel Cove beach revealed that these sands come from a hidden mountain range in Antarctica. The discovery once again revealed how complex and interconnected geological processes on Earth are.
The connection of Antarctic mountains and pink sands
When the pink sands found in Petrel Cove attracted the attention of scientists, research began to examine the mineral structure of these sands. These sands were found to consist of a mineral called garnet, which usually crystallizes at high temperatures.
Garnet is found where large mountain ranges rise and therefore plays an important role in understanding mountain formation processes. Research into the age and origin of garnets in Australia has shown that these minerals formed approximately 590 million years ago and are associated with the Transantarctic Mountains in Antarctica.
Geologist Jacob Mulder and his team from the University of Adelaide investigated how these garnets reached Australia. Research has revealed that these garnets most likely came from the Transantarctic Mountains in Antarctica and were hidden under the ice sheet of these mountains.
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This mountain range may have been carried by an ice sheet moving northwest during the late Palaeozoic Ice Age, when it was part of the Gondwana supercontinent. During this period, garnet-rich glacial sands may have accumulated off the coast of South Australia and been carried by waves to Petrel Cove beach. The discovery is considered an important step in our understanding of the geological history of Antarctica. Learning more about the hidden mountain ranges in Antarctica will contribute to the understanding of continental movements and geological processes on Earth.