Scientists Discover Mysterious Structures Deep Within Earths Mantle
- These structures, located in the mantle layer between the core and the crust, are concentrated beneath North Africa, North America, East Asia, the western Pacific, the northwestern Pacific,...
- The zones act as seismic sponges, scattering and decelerating the energy generated by earthquakes.
- Researchers were conducting a study on PKP waves—massive seismic pulses that travel through the planet's center, passing through the mantle and liquid outer core before returning through the...
These structures, located in the mantle layer between the core and the crust, are concentrated beneath North Africa, North America, East Asia, the western Pacific, the northwestern Pacific, and Papua New Guinea, according to reporting from etindonesia.com.
Seismic Deceleration in the Deep Mantle
The zones act as seismic sponges, scattering and decelerating the energy generated by earthquakes. For years, scientists linked ULVZs primarily to volcanic hotspots—the conduits where hot rock ascends to form volcanic islands. However, the discovery of these zones suggests these features are far more widespread than earlier models indicated, etindonesia.com reports.
The discovery was an incidental finding. Researchers were conducting a study on PKP waves—massive seismic pulses that travel through the planet’s center, passing through the mantle and liquid outer core before returning through the mantle to the opposite side of the globe. By analyzing PKP precursor waves, which occasionally arrive before the primary waves, the team identified these anomalies, etindonesia.com reports.
The Enigma of the Earth’s Extremes
Despite their detection, the composition and purpose of these zones remain a mystery. Michael Thorne, a geologist and geophysicist at the University of Utah, describes them as some of the most extreme features observed within the planet, according to etindonesia.com.
“Ini adalah salah satu fitur paling ekstrem yang kita lihat di mana pun di dalam planet ini dan kita tidak tahu apa itu, dari mana asalnya, terbuat dari apa, [atau] apa perannya di dalam Bumi. “Ada banyak pertanyaan terbuka yang belum kita temukan jawabannya.”
Michael Thorne, via etindonesia.com
Thorne notes that the data indicates these ULVZs are actively forming. Their existence proves that the internal dynamics of the mantle are significantly more complex than previously mapped, etindonesia.com reports.
Mapping Global Heat Flow
Because ULVZs are often tied to the upward movement of hot rock, they serve as markers for geologists tracking the flow of heat from the core to the surface. Mapping their distribution provides critical data on mantle movement and the operation of volcanic hotspots, etindonesia.com reports.
The spread of these zones across diverse regions—from East Asia to North Africa—suggests that mantle convection and the drivers of volcanic activity are not isolated incidents. Instead, they appear to be part of a broader global system, according to reporting by etindonesia.com.