Scientists discovered two sunken islands west of Australia, in the Indian Ocean, which once formed part of the last link between India and Australia. The two islands were about the size of Tasmania. They were once part of the supercontinent Gondwana and more than 1.5 kilometres underwater. The islands, called micro continents, were formed when India moved away from Australia, 130 million years ago during the Cretaceous period (when dinosaurs roamed the Earth).
The scientists made the discovery while they were mapping the seafloor of the Perth Abyssal Plain. The data collected on the voyage could help us understand better the process in which India, Australia and Antarctica broke off from Gondwana.
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