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The world famous Grand Canyon acquired its shape relatively recently, a new research suggests.

According to the research, the majority of the shape was put in place just five to six million years ago. Previous studies had suggested the formation 70 million years ago. However, according to the latest research, only few segments are that ancient and full system is young.

"The 'old canyon model' has argued that the Grand Canyon was carved 70 million years ago in the same place and to nearly the same depth as the modern canyon. We are refuting that," said Prof Karl Karlstrom from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque.

"We are also refuting the 'young canyon model', which claims the canyon was cut entirely in the last six million years. Instead, we show that the Colorado River used some old segments as it found its path from the Rockies to the Gulf of California in the past six million years.

"What's different here I think is that we finally have a description of the Grand Canyon that honors all the hard-won data," he told BBC News.

Grand Canyon runs for almost 450km and has a depth of 1,800m. Every year five million tourists visit National Park to take it in. 

Researchers used a technique called thermochronology to constrain the timing of the formation. Given its huge size, the team could only consider four of the five Grand Canyon's segments.

"If you were to add up the 280-mile length and ask, 'how much is young? More than half of it is young; a quarter of it is middle-aged - 15-25 million years old; and the rest of it is 70 million years old," said Prof Karlstrom, according to BBC.

"It continues to deepen today, of course. Right now, over the course of the last half-a-million-years or so, it's been deepening by about the thickness of a piece of paper every year.

"It's a beautiful place to work and a wonderful laboratory where the geology is laid bare. It's great for research, and for the many students we take there to teach."

The findings of the investigation has been published in the journal Nature Geoscience.