In Antarctica there is a long chain of underwater volcanoes:the discovery is surprising

Craters found that follow one another for 50 kilometers, the highest remains 600 meters under the sea.The research coordinated by the University of Genoa

GENOA – Fifty kilometers of volcanoes, one attached to the other, for a width of up to 15 kilometers. Peaks up to 1,500 meters high, but which remain completely submerged for at least 600 meters depth.It is the extraordinary discovery that occurred in the seas of Antarctica, where a series of investigations conducted on board the icebreaker Laura Bassi made it possible to identify an underwater chain of volcanoes, never before identified, in Northern Victoria Land.

The first clues emerged during the 38th Italian expedition carried out in February 2023 and were confirmed during the 39th campaign which ended at the beginning of March, financed by the Ministry of University and Research, as part of the national research program in Antarctica, coordinated from the University of Genoa. The chain of volcanoes is located off a remote area of ​​the Southern Hemisphere, south of the 60th parallel (known as the Pennell Coast), where the circum-Antarctic currents of the Southern Ocean meet the swirling waters of the Ross Sea.

THE DISCOVERY WILL PROMOTE STUDIES ON GLOBAL CHANGES IN THE EARTH

“The area studied by the project, due to its strategic position, represents a key area for understanding the interaction between the geological processes linked to the movements of the lithospheric plates and the evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet - underlines Laura Crispini, professor of the University of Genoa and scientific manager of the project - in the past, the area has been little or not investigated at all, above all due to its premote geographical location, often covered by sea ice and characterized by extreme weather and sea conditions.We managed to record a new exploratory milestone for new and future research."

The scientific team expects to obtain results useful for understanding the global changes that characterize the Earth, such as the opening of the ocean passages which favored the climatic isolation of Antarctica, with the consequent cooling and development of the ice cap.“The first analyzes reveal the existence of a major volcanic complex occupying an area of ​​over 500 square kilometers, consisting of a set of cones aligned along a North-South direction, and a second ridge, also of volcanic origin, of smaller dimensions, in the southern part of the study area.The volcanic buildings appear both isolated and forming elongated reliefs and, in some cases, the summit craters are clearly visible", specifies researcher Dario Civile.

“The volcanism appears to be geologically very recent– he adds – but its origin and age will have to be carefully evaluated.The discovery of such a young chain characterized by rising lava and fluids has numerous relevant implications both from a geological and geodynamic point of view, and from a physical-chemical point of view, as well as the composition of the waters and interactions with the biosphere".