Droughts reveal ancient stones, dinosaur footprints and warships (PICTURES)
From the retreat of the waters
Europe is suffering from the worst droughts in half a millennium and many rivers have dried up or their levels have dropped significantly. As a result, in just one week, many objects of the past that were hidden at the bottom were revealed.
Falling levels in the Danube have revealed more than 20 sunken Nazi German ships after 80 years. The ships were deliberately sunk as the Russian Red Army approached, to prevent them from falling into Soviet hands. The danger from the ships that have now come to the surface is significant, since they are filled with tons of ammunition and explosives, threatening not only the lives of the inhabitants but also a huge ecological disaster. The cost of removing the explosives is estimated at €29 million.
In China, receding levels of the Yangtze River have revealed an entire island, on which three Buddha statues, at least 600 years old, have been found. 66 rivers have dried up in Chongqing province as it experiences its worst heat wave in six decades. As a result, power production from hydroelectric plants was reduced, affecting the production of thousands of factories including Foxconn, Toyota and Tesla.
In Spain, the receding level of the Tagus River has revealed a megalithic structure, nicknamed the “Spanish Stonehenge”, which is estimated to be 5,000 years old.
In Texas, USA, the worst drought in 1,200 years in the Valley of the Dinosaurs, revealed footprints of a two-meter dinosaur predator, the Acrocanthosaurus. It was 4.5 meters tall and lived 113 million years ago.
