Antarctica had huge forest fires 75 million years ago
Recommended for Middle Grades
When we think of Antarctica, we think of snow and ice, with no trees or plants insight. Well, it turns out that it did experience forest fires but around 75 million years ago.
This was during the late Cretaceous period (100 million to 66 million years ago). This was one of the warmest periods on Earth and dinosaurs still roamed the earth.
So, at that time, Antarctica’s James Ross Island was home to a forest that had conifer trees, ferns, and flowering plants known as angiosperms. There were also dinosaurs living there because the place was very different then.
A new study of ancient charcoal remnants (leftover) shows that those forests did catch wild fires that burned parts of them very badly. The charcoal is what is left of plants and trees that got burnt. While they are very small and thin, scientists studied them under the microscope. And found that they belonged to the conifer family (which includes pine, juniper and fir trees).
What does the study show?
This study helps us see that forest fires during the Cretaceous period were more common than we thought before.
It also adds to the proof that such fires were common in Antarctica during the Campanian age (about 84 million to 72 million years ago). The fires often started due to lightning strikes, falling meteors and even volcanic activity.
These kinds of studies show us how much our planet has changed and will continue to change long after we are gone.
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