Scientists finally unearth 115-million-year-old lost continent ‘Agroland!’

In a new development, scientists have discovered fragments of a continent called Argoland in Southeast Asia. Reports state that these fragments were originally part of Australia, but have since then shifted towards the eastern side of Indonesia. Argoland was once a part of a landmass that existed 155 million years ago, spanning an area as extensive as the United States.

In reference to this, Eldert Advokaat, a geologist and author affiliated with Utrecht University, explained that the extended duration of their research is due to the fragmented nature of available information. He also noted that their investigation spanned seven years, reflecting the challenges of working with isolated pockets of data.
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The recently discovered fragments of continents have been found in the surrounding regions of Southeast Asia, which were originally part of Australia. Although scientists identified remnants of ribbon continents in Southeast Asia, they struggled to find the answers. The chain referred to as ‘Argoland,’ initially existed as a cohesive landmass.

The situation in Southeast Asia differs from regions like South America and Africa, where continents are nearly broken into pieces. Reports add that Argoland was also fragmented into numerous pieces, which further complicated the reconstruction of its historical trajectory. A map illustrating the current location of Argoland has been shared, which reveals that the fragments have primarily shifted towards the eastern side of Indonesia, with some migrating towards Myanmar.
Based on this premise, researchers came to a conclusion that Argoland had not actually vanished, but rather managed to survive as an extensively stretched and fragmented collection beneath the islands east of Indonesia. This revelation allowed scientists to trace the trajectory of Argoland over the last 155 million years.

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In light of the unique and distinct geographical characteristics of Argoland, which is a collection of microcontinents rather than a unified landmass, Professor Advokaat and his esteemed colleagues at Utrecht University have indicatively coined a new term to encapsulate this unique geographic entity - Argopelago.