Almost Atlantis

In 2024, Spanish oceanographers studying the deep seafloor west of the Canary Islands discovered an enormous seamount --  A mile-high, 70-mile long mountain on the bottom of the ocean, formed of three inter-linked ancient volcanoes. At its summit, just 200 feet beneath the water’s surface, they found sand dunes and cliff faces that could only have been formed if it had once been above water. During the last Ice Age, when Earth’s water was locked up in continental ice sheets, sea level was over 300 feet lower.  Meaning that at least 100 feet of the seamount would have risen above the water, to form an island many miles long It was almost directly west of the Straits of Gibraltar – exactly where Plato had described the city of Atlantis, before it sank beneath the waves. Could it be? These scientists began to wonder, had they accidentally discovered the lost city? They sent down the ship’s ROVs – Remote Operated Vehicles, to explore the surface of the seamount.  They found sediments and other evidence of erosion, only possible if the island were indeed above water. But unfortunately, no ruins of an ancient city, or any evidence of human habitation. Their continued research did provide valuable data about the volcanic past of the eastern Atlantic, the geologic formation of seamounts, and how they impact ocean currents – their original mission. But Atlantis remains elusive, perhaps waiting for future scientists.