Tag

Tectonics

All articles tagged with #tectonics

earth-science2 days ago•16 min saved

Yellowstone's Heat Source Traced to Shallow Mantle, New Study Finds

A new 3D model of Yellowstone and the Eastern Snake River Plain suggests tectonic forces within the lithosphere drive magma generation and migration from the shallow mantle (upper asthenosphere) into a complex plumbing system, rather than a deep mantle plume powering a single giant chamber. This tectonically controlled magma movement could improve eruption forecasting and hazard assessment for the park’s massive caldera, whose last major eruption occurred about 630,000 years ago and is not expected imminently.

via Gizmodo|

#earth-science #magma #mantle

science25 days ago•189 min saved

Africa’s Rift: A Slow Move Toward a New Ocean and New Science

In Ethiopia’s Afar region, a triple-junction rift is slowly pulling Africa apart, providing a rare window into continental rifting as mantle plumes pulse and plates shift at millimeters per year. Scientists study Erta Ale’s lava lake and fossil finds like Paranthropus to understand deep geology, while concluding that a new ocean may form only over millions of years and that the region offers invaluable insights into Africa’s geological history.

via CNN|

#afar-region #erta-ale #great-rift-valley

science2 months ago•5 min saved

500-KM Oceanic Canyon Traced to a Tectonic Zipper, Not Erosion

Scientists mapped the King’s Trough, a 500+ km underwater canyon in the North Atlantic, and determined it formed over millions of years by the slow separation of the European and African plates via a tectonic 'zipper,' aided by unusually thick, hot crust from the Azores mantle plume. The finding, reported after METEOR expedition data and high‑resolution sonar, links deep mantle processes to surface tectonics and reshapes how we think about underwater canyon formation.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#geology #kings-trough #mantle-plume

science2 months ago•2 min saved

Lithospheric Drip Redirected a River Across Utah's Uinta Mountains

Geologists propose that a dense chunk at the base of the Uinta Mountains’ lithosphere ‘dripped’ into Earth’s mantle, temporarily pulling the range downward and allowing the Green River to cut perpendicularly across the mountains to join the Colorado River, forming the Canyon of Lodor. Seismic imaging reveals a ~200 km-deep, cold chunk and thinner crust beneath the range; after the drip broke free about 2–5 million years ago, the mountains rebounded, the canyon solidified, and the Green River became a Colorado River tributary, reshaping North America’s continental divide.

via ScienceAlert|

#colorado-river #geology #green-river

science2 months ago•13 min saved

Ancient Collisions Carved the Wallace Line, Explaining a Biodiversity Boundary

A computer-model study links the Wallace Line to a 35-million-year-old continental collision and subsequent climate swings, explaining why Bali’s Asian fauna abruptly shifts to Australian forms on Lombok and nearby islands—and how tectonics and climate history have shaped biodiversity across the region, with nearby lines like Weber’s and Lydekker’s also noted as regional boundaries.

via ZME Science|

#australia-asia-fauna #biogeography #paleoclimatology

planet-earth2 months ago•55 min saved

Drying climate accelerates East Africa’s Rift

New research links the shift from humid to dry conditions in East Africa with faster fault movement in the East African Rift, measured at about 0.17 millimeters per year of extra movement on top of the regional 6.35 millimeters per year baseline. The dewatering of lakes after the African Humid Period reduces crustal pressure, while a nearby magma chamber may receive more melt, increasing tectonic activity around Lake Turkana and potentially accelerating continental breakup; scientists are expanding the study to Lake Malawi for broader climate-tectonics insight.

via Live Science|

#climate-change #east-africa #east-african-rift

science2 months ago•6 min saved

Vanished Ocean Wrote Central Asia’s Geologic Blueprint

A new study shows that the ancient Tethys Ocean helped shape Central Asia’s terrain long before the Himalayas, with its retreat reactivating old fault lines and uplifting ranges across present-day Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and western China, challenging climate- and mantle-driven views of mountain building.

via Indian Defence Review|

#central-asia #mountain-building #science

science2 months ago•4 min saved

Finke River: Earth's oldest known river still carving its path

Central Australia’s Finke River (Larapinta) is estimated at 300–400 million years old, making it one of the oldest rivers on Earth. Its cross-axial drainage allowed it to cut through rising MacDonnell Ranges as the landscape formed, aided by Australia’s long tectonic stability; radioactive dating of rocks supports the river’s ancient timeline.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#australia #finke-river #geology

science2 months ago•28 min saved

Earth’s crust drips beneath central Türkiye, reshaping the Konya Basin

Satellite data and seismic evidence confirm a multi‑stage lithospheric dripping beneath Türkiye’s Central Anatolian Plateau: unusually dense lower lithosphere sinks into the mantle, deepening the Konya Basin, and later detaches allowing surface rebound as the weight is shed, linking deep Earth processes to observed subsidence amid plateau uplift.

via Earth.com|

#geology #konya-basin #lithosphere

science3 months ago•4 min saved

Scientists Discover New Continent, Challenging Geology Rules

Scientists have discovered a new submerged microcontinent beneath the Davis Strait, challenging traditional views of Earth's landmass formation and offering new insights into microcontinent survival and separation processes, especially in tectologically simple regions.

via Indian Defence Review|

#davis-strait #geology #microcontinent

science3 months ago•4 min saved

China Begins Drilling Six Miles Into the Earth

China is drilling a 6-mile-deep borehole in the Taklimakan Desert to study Earth's crust, tectonics, and ancient geological records, pushing the limits of drilling technology and expanding understanding of Earth's interior.

via Earth.com|

#china #deep-drilling #earths-interior

science3 months ago•4 min saved

Scientists Uncover Mysterious 20km Structure Beneath Bermuda

Scientists have discovered a massive 12.4-mile-thick, unusual rock layer beneath Bermuda, challenging existing geological models and potentially explaining the island's persistent oceanic swell despite the absence of recent volcanic activity. This layer, a remnant of ancient volcanic activity linked to the breakup of Pangea, offers new insights into Earth's tectonic processes and Bermuda's unique geological history.

via Indian Defence Review|

#bermuda #deep-structure #geology

science4 months ago•4 min saved

Turkey's Fault Ripping Open Ground Challenges Scientific Understanding

A recent study in Turkey reveals that the Tuz Gölü Fault, previously thought to be a strike-slip fault, is actually extending vertically with minimal lateral movement, challenging decades of geophysical models and highlighting the importance of long-term geological data in understanding regional tectonics.

via The Daily Galaxy|

#earthquake #fault #geology

science7 months ago•3 min saved

Revised Models Challenge Century-Old Himalayas Theory

A new study challenges the century-old theory of Himalayas formation, proposing that instead of an ultra-thick crust, a 'crust-mantle-crust' sandwich formed through viscous underplating of Indian crust beneath Asian lithosphere better explains the mountain range's geology, with significant implications for understanding mountain-building processes.

via Phys.org|

#crustal-dynamics #geology #himalayas

science8 months ago•2 min saved

Mysterious Hot Blob from Greenland Rift Approaching New York

A large blob of hot rock beneath the Appalachian Mountains, linked to ancient rifting between Greenland and Canada 80 million years ago, challenges previous theories about continental breakup and may explain the mountain range's uplift, with ongoing research aiming to confirm its origins and implications for Earth's geological processes.

via ScienceAlert|

#geology #greenland #hot-rock