One of the largest canyons in the world has been discovered under a large ice sheet that covers most of Greenland.
The canyon was discovered by mistake as scientists were researching climate change by radar data collected by NASA and researchers from the UK and Germany according to a press release.
"With Google Streetview available for many cities around the world and digital maps for everything from population density to happiness one might assume that the landscape of the Earth has been fully explored and mapped. Our research shows there's still a lot left to discover," said Jonathan Bamber, professor at Bristol's School of Geographical Sciences and lead author of the study, in a press release.
By analyzing the data, the team of scientists discovered a "continuous" bedrock canyon that stretches from almost the center of the island. The canyon can't be seen with the naked eye.
Before the ice arrived, the canyon was "carved out" by a large river over four million years ago.
The research was funded by an EU program called ice2sea and the U.K. Natural Environment Research Council (NERC).
"A discovery of this nature shows that the Earth has not yet given up all its secrets," said Professor David Vaughan, ice2sea co-ordinator based at the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge in a press statement. "A 750km canyon preserved under the ice for millions of years is a breathtaking find in itself, but this research is also important in furthering our understanding of Greenland's past. This area's ice sheet contributes to sea level rise and this work can help us put current changes in context."
The ice sheet is two miles thick, and is so heavy it makes the island "sag" in the middle according to scientists. Central Greenland was once around 500m above sea level, but it's now 200m below sea level according to The British Antarctic Survey.
Some of the data used in the study came from NASA's Operation IceBridge.
IceBridge is a six-year mission and is the largest airborne survey of Earth's polar ice ever flown, according to the Associated Press.
"It is quite remarkable that a 750km-long channel the size of parts of the Grand Canyon is discovered in the 21st century below the Greenland Ice Sheet," said Michael Studinger, Operation IceBridge Project Scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. "It shows how little we still know about the bedrock below large continental ice sheets."
Related Articles:
2014 Detroit Electric SP:01 Officially Delayed in The U.S.
Tesla Installs Six Supercharger Stations in Europe for Model S
GM to Sell a Vehicle With Self-Driving Capabilities by 2020
Kylie Jenner Crashes 125K Car Weeks After Turning 16 (PHOTOS/ VIDEO)
Arizona Girl, 6, Killed When 8-Year-Old Brother Drives Into Pole
See Now: OnePlus 6: How Different Will It Be From OnePlus 5?
