Sunken plates cause dents in Earth's shape
Nature Geoscience
2010년5월10일
Low points in the geoid ― the shape the Earth's surface would take if it was entirely covered by motionless water ― arise from anomalies in the Earth's mantle where ancient tectonic plates have sunk, concludes a study published online this week in Nature Geoscience. The findings explain the low points in the geoid that are found around the Pacific Ocean, including troughs in the Indian Ocean, the Ross Sea off Antarctica, northeast Pacific and west Atlantic Oceans.
Sonja Spasojevic and colleagues used a model of the dynamics of Earth's mantle to identify anomalies in mantle velocities associated with the geoid low points. They attribute these unusual velocities to the presence of ancient tectonic plates in the deep mantle, where they form 'slab graveyards', and to the effect of their chemical make-up on the overlying mid-to-upper mantle.
doi: 10.1038/ngeo855
리서치 하이라이트
-
6월29일
Environment: 1.81 billion people at risk of 1-in-100 year floodNature Communications
-
6월28일
Astronomy: Hydrogen- and helium-rich exoplanets may provide habitable conditions for billions of yearsNature Astronomy
-
6월28일
Climate change: Decline in tropical cyclones during the twentieth centuryNature Climate Change
-
6월24일
Environment: Assessing the impacts of US school lunches on climate, land and waterCommunications Earth & Environment
-
6월24일
Palaeontology: It sucked to be the prey of ancient cephalopodsScientific Reports
-
6월23일
Scientific community: Women credited less than men in scientific paper authorshipNature
