New study reveals India and Antarctica were connected: Here's what researchers found

In geography classes, one of the most fascinating facts about Earth that have long fuelled the imaginations of students is the movement of tectonic plates and the idea that today’s continents were once joined together.

Among the most intriguing theories is that Antarctica, now an isolated and icy landmass, was once connected to the Indian subcontinent.

Now, scientists studying ancient rocks from Andhra Pradesh’s Eastern Ghats have uncovered fresh evidence suggesting that India and Antarctica were once connected before the continents split nearly 150 million years ago.

Scientists find matching geological signatures in India and Antarctica

A study conducted by scientists from Presidency University, Queensland University of Technology, National Centre for Earth Science Studies, and Korea Polar Research Institute examined ancient metamorphic rocks in Andhra Pradesh.

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Researchers found that the rocks share the same age, chemical signatures, mineral composition, and three-stage geological history as rocks discovered in East Antarctica.

According to the study, eastern India and Antarctica were once fused together and formed a giant ancient mountain belt known as the Rayner-Eastern Ghats orogen. Millions of years later, the supercontinent Gondwana broke apart, separating the two regions.

Speaking to Times of India, Sankar Bose, dean of the faculty of natural and mathematical sciences at Presidency University, said the team examined minerals such as zircon, garnet, and monazite in Vizianagaram-Salur in Andhra Pradesh using advanced mineral analysis techniques.

Three stages of geological history discovered

Scientists say Gondwana began breaking apart around 130 to 150 million years ago during the age of dinosaurs. India drifted northward and later collided with Asia, while Antarctica moved south toward the pole, splitting the once-connected mountain range apart.

“The rocks from Vizianagaram and Salur recorded the same three major stages of geological history that have already been identified in East Antarctica," said Prof Bose.

According to the study, the first stage occurred around 1,000 to 990 million years ago, when the rocks were exposed to temperatures close to 1,000 degrees Celsius during a major continental collision that formed a vast mountain range.

The second stage, between 950 and 890 million years ago, involved further heating and structural changes within the rocks.

The final phase took place between 570 and 540 million years ago, when mineral-rich fluids moved through cracks in the rocks, leaving behind a distinct chemical signature found in both India and Antarctica.

Earlier studies had also linked India with Antarctica

This is not the first study to suggest a geological connection between the Indian subcontinent and Antarctica.

In 2016, a group of geologists found evidence supporting the hypothesis that the Indian subcontinent was part of Antarctica nearly a billion years ago.

Researchers suggested that the landmasses separated and reunited multiple times because of tectonic plate movements long before the evolution of humans.

What was Gondwana?

Gondwana was an ancient southern supercontinent that existed hundreds of millions of years ago. Over time, it broke apart and drifted to form the modern continents of South America, Africa, Antarctica, Australia, and the Indian subcontinent.

The continent of Gondwana was named by Austrian scientist Eduard Suess after the Indian region of Gondwana, a name derived from the Sanskrit meaning “forest of the Gonds”.

Continents are constantly moving

The continents we recognise today are only a temporary arrangement in Earth’s long geological history.

Earth’s landmasses are constantly moving at a slow pace and at several points in history, have joined together to form massive supercontinents before breaking apart again over millions of years.