Mysterious 'yellow brick road to Atlantis' found on bottom of ocean

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Being called "the way to Atlantica".

floor.

They were searching to investigate underwater mounds known as seamounts, which are formed by volcanic activity.

The Nautilus exploration team noticed an unusual arrangement while they were conducting a survey in the Lili'uokalani Ridge segment of the Pacific Ocean.

It's situated in the USA's Papahānaumokuakea Marine National Monument.

While they lived-streamed their findings, the researchers were shown coming across a formation that, at first glance, looked like a made-by-mates brick road with visible rectangular blocks.

They half-jokingly wondered if the yellow brick path they discovered at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean could be the "road to Atlantis," a mythical imperial superpower island mentioned by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato.

Once the crew sighted the formation, a scientist on the radio was heard remarking that the pathway was "the road to Atlantis."

One scientist shot back with the query, "Are you referring to 'the yellow brick road'."

Although it appears to be a yellow brick road leading to the fictional city of Atlantis, it's actually an example of ancient volcanic activity.

"Fair dinkum, on the summit of Nootka Seamount, the team spotted a "dried lake bed" formation, now IDed as a fractured flow of hyaloclastite rock (a volcanic rock formed in high-energy eruptions where many rock fragments settle to the ocean floor)."

They also reckoned that the pattern of cracks in the rock lookin' like cobblestone is probably thanks to constant heatin' and coolin' from heaps of volcanic eruptions over the years.

The "unexplored region" is giving scientists a heads up on getting a closer look at life on "and within the rocky surfaces of these deep, old seamounts."

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