Geologists Have Discovered 280-Million-Year-Old Fossilized Forest In Antartica

Most of us know that Antarctica is a frosty wilderness covered in thick compacted ice. 280-million-year-old tree fossils, Which is believed to be evidence of the oldest polar forest, have been discovered by the team of Geologists in Antartica. This can be thougt as dating back to before the first dinosaurs walked the Earth. Now the team is braving the land of ice once more to uncover clues as to how forests once flourished there.

"There isn't anything like that today," he said. "These trees could turn their growing cycles on and off like a light switch. We know the winter shutoff happened right away, but we don't know how active they were during the summertime and if they could force themselves into dormancy while it was still light out." The trees are believed to have been able to survive by living nearly half the year in absolute darkness followed by up to five months of continuous light.