Submerged prehistoric landmasses like Doggerland lost to post-Ice Age sea level rise. At the peak of the last ice age approximately 20,000 years ago, sea levels were roughly 120 meters lower than today. Doggerland, a landmass in what is now the North Sea, was larger than modern Britain and connected Britain to continental Europe; it was inhabited by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers whose stone tools, mammoth bones, and human remains are occasionally recovered in fishing nets. Sundaland, the exposed continental shelf connecting Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula, was comparable in size to India and supported forests, river systems, and coastal habitats for hundreds of thousands of years before being submerged.
At the peak of the last ice age ~20,000 years ago, sea levels were roughly 120 meters lower. Doggerland connected Britain to continental Europe, inhabited by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers. Sundaland linked Southeast Asian islands, and Beringia bridged Asia to North America. Incredible lost worlds! 🌊🦴
Key Facts
- At the peak of the last ice age approximately 20,000 years ago, sea levels were roughly 120 meters lower than today.
- Doggerland, a landmass in what is now the North Sea, was larger than modern Britain and connected Britain to continental Europe; it was inhabited by Mesolithic hunter-gatherers whose stone tools, mammoth bones, and human remains are occasionally recovered in fishing nets.
- Sundaland, the exposed continental shelf connecting Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula, was comparable in size to India and supported forests, river systems, and coastal habitats for hundreds of thousands of years before being submerged.
- Beringia connected Asia to North America across what is now the Bering Strait and was inhabited and fertile before sea level rise submerged it.
Source: An Insane Discovery Was Just Found Beneath Antarctica by Michael Button