NASA
Erta Ale satellite image
A new investigation found that AFAR’s Mantlic Pluma has a “heartbeat” on a scale of millions of years.
A new published in Nature Geoscience revealed that AFAR’s Mantlic Pluma, under Ethiopia as a “heartbeat”boosting volcanic activity and continental fragmentation in the region. These pulsations, which influence the chemical composition of volcanic rocks, offer a new perspective on the dynamic behavior of the interior of the Earth.
AFAR’s feather is unique of the earth’s cloak. Unlike feathers under oceanic crust – such as Hawaii – AFAR’s feather is drilling the thick continental crust. This hot point is under a tectonically active zone, where three continental riftes meet, making it one of the most intriguing geologically areas on the planet.
The researchers analyzed 130 volcanic rock samples Less than 2.6 million years old, comparing its chemical composition with older formations in the region. The conclusions indicate that the rocks had distinct chemical signatures that changed in regular standards over time – evidence of rhythmic pulsations in the cloak.
“These partially molten cloak ascens are channeled by tectonic plates above them,” explained study leader Emma Watts. “This is important to the way we think the interaction between the earth and its surface.”
Co-author Tom Gernon compared the chemical bands on the rocks to a pulse that runs a narrow artery. “These pulsations behave differently depending on the thickness of the tectonic plate and the speed with which it separates. In faster separation riftes, such as the Red Sea, the wrists move more efficiently. ”
Pulsations should result from variations in the deep interior of the cloak, caused by the RECYCLING OF LAND CROST MATERIAL and by primitive zones of the cloak not yet explored. “Each pulse has a slightly different composition,” Watts explained, “which allowed us to detect them through chemical analysis.”
The volcanic and tectonic history of the AFAR region dates back to 35 million years, with breakdown phases separated for about 12 million years. Although the study cannot accurately determine the interval between the pulses, researchers believe they occur in a MILLION YEARS TIME SCALE.
Although this pulsating behavior seems specific to AFAR, similar chemical signatures were observed in other feathers, such as that of the cannaries, suggesting that this phenomenon It may be more common than you thought.
