According to a study, <\/span>India\u2019s Singhbhum region may have been Earth\u2019s earliest continental land to rise above the ocean 3.2 billion years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n The researchers studied the granites that form the continental crust of Singhbhum region. Scientists found sandstones in Singhbhum region with geological signatures of ancient river channels, tidal plains and beaches over 3.2 billion years old.<\/p>\n Earth\u2019s first landmass emerged 3.2 billion years ago: <\/b>Currently, a <\/span>widely accepted view is that the continents rose from the oceans about 2.5 billion years ago. <\/span>However, the study has suggested that this has happened 700 million years earlier which is about 3.2 billion years ago.<\/span><\/p>\n Moreover, the earliest continental landmass to emerge may have been Jharkhand\u2019s Singhbhum region.<\/span><\/p>\n Earth\u2019s earliest continents emerged from massive outbursts of magma: <\/b>The study has also challenged another well-accepted notion that continents rose above the ocean due to plate tectonics.<\/p>\n According to the study, Earth\u2019s earliest continents emerged not through plate tectonic processes but from massive outbursts of magma that hardened into continental crust.<\/span><\/p>\nWhat are the key findings of the study?<\/b><\/h5>\n