14 DAY TRIAL // A ginormous canyon is hidden under Greenland's ice sheet, researchers now say. Apparently, the canyon was carved by a river more than 4 million years ago, long before Greenland came to be covered by a thick layer of ice.
In a paper published in Thursday's issue of the journal Science, researchers detail that this canyon measures about 460 miles (750 kilometers) in length.
This means that it is longer than the Grand Canyon, which stretches over “merely” 277 miles (446 kilometers).
As far as its depth is concerned, scientists say that, in certain places, the recently discovered bedrock canyon measures an impressive 2,600 feet (800 meters) from top to bottom.
It extends from Greenland's center to the Petermann Glacier fjord in the island's northern regions, NASA explains.
Millions of years ago, the canyon housed a fairly impressive river that flowed from the island's interior to its coastline.
Scientists suspect that, nowadays, it serves to transport sub-glacial meltwater from Greenland's center to the ocean, the same source tells us.
Commenting on the discovery of this canyon, scientist Jonathan Bamber at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom stated as follows:
“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.”
“It is quite remarkable that a channel the size of the Grand Canyon is discovered in the 21st century below the Greenland ice sheet.”
“It shows how little we still know about the bedrock below large continental ice sheets,” another researcher, i.e. Michael Studinger at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, wished to stress.
Interestingly enough, this canyon was discovered quite by chance by scientists who were looking to document how climate change is affecting Greenland's ice sheet.
Check out the video below to learn more about the newly discovered canyon.
