Ancient whale bones on a raised beach at Vibebukta 79°22’n 22°36’e, Nordaustlandet, Spitzbergen, Svalbard.
Ancient whale vertebrae on a raised beach at Vibebukta 79°22’n 22°36’e, Nordaustlandet, Spitzbergen, Svalbard. At the end of the last glacial period as the ice melted, the weight was lifted off the land, and the depression of the earths crust formed by the weight of the ice was reveresed and the crust started to bounce back in a process called isostatic rebound, leaving the formed coastline high and dry. Some of the ancient whale bones have been dated at 10,000 years old and are now up to 40 metres above current day sea levels. The whale washed ashore dead on an ancient coastline that is now well above todays coast.
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Photo credit: © Ashley Cooper / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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