ANTARCTICA (WKRC) - Scientists recently discovered amber fragments that suggest the snow-covered continent of Antarctica could have once been a lush j

Newly discovered amber reveals Antarctica once looked very different

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2024-11-18 15:00:17

ANTARCTICA (WKRC) - Scientists recently discovered amber fragments that suggest the snow-covered continent of Antarctica could have once been a lush jungle.

The idea that Antarctica once looked like an entirely different part of the world has been around for a while. Explorers throughout history have discovered fossilized evidence that trees likely existed in the area, like roots and pollen, but were not able to definitively prove exactly what the landscape looked like.

A new study from Antarctic Science revealed that an examination of amber fragments discovered in 2017 revealed that trees not only existed in Antarctica, but thrived. Not only that, but the trees produced resin (which became amber), implying that the climate was entirely different to what it is today.

That alone would be an interesting discovery, but the find's impact goes beyond history books. The period in which Antarctica looked like a lush jungle was a period in which the world was filled with greenhouse gasses, according to BGR.

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