Antarctica had semi-tropical rainforests 50 million years ago

RAINFOREST thrived in Antarctica during a period of high atmospheric carbon levels 50 million years ago, scientists have discovered.

And they are warning the planet's atmosphere could have similar levels of the greenhouse gas within hundreds of years and we could end up with an ice-free Antarctica.

An international team led by German scientists and involving University of Queensland Environmental Geologist Dr Kevin Welsh has found tropical palms grew on the coast of Antarctica 52 million years ago.

At that warm period in the earth's history, there was twice as much CO2 in the atmosphere as there is now and winter temperatures of 10C meant Antarctica's 4km thick ice sheet didn't exist.

"It's massively different to what we think of today," Dr Welsh said.

"It would be entirely ice-free and not only ice-free but warm enough that you'd have near-tropical rainforest actually growing along the margin of the continent."