Deep inside the Earth in Antarctica, mountains with peaks three to four times higher than Mount Everest have been discovered, according to scientists.
During the study, when the researchers tracked seismic waves generated by 25 earthquakes, they found that these waves inexplicably slowed down when they reached a jagged spot at the core-mantle boundary.
“This vast otherworldly mountain range was highly variable – some peaks extended 40 km (24.8 miles) into the mantle, equivalent to 4.5 times the height of Everest. Meanwhile, the others were only 3 km (1.7 miles) high,” the BBC reported.
According to the researchers, the mountains are parts of the lower mantle that have been superheated due to their proximity to the Earth’s hot core. While the mantle can reach 3,700 C (6,692 F), this is relatively mild—the core can bend an atom as high as 5,500 C (9,932 F)—not far from the surface temperature of the Sun.
What are these mountains made of?
The deep mountains could be made of a subtly different material than the surrounding mantle, the report suggested. “Incredibly, it is thought to be the remains of ancient oceanic crust that disappeared into its depths, eventually sinking over hundreds of millions of years to settle just above the core,” he added.
More mysterious structures
Deep mountain ranges are usually found near other mysterious structures: giant blobs or large low shear-velocity provinces (LLSVPs). There are currently two such known structures: an amorphous lump called “Tuzo” under Africa and another known as “Jason” under the Pacific.
“They are believed to be truly prehistoric, perhaps billions of years old. Again, no one knows what they are or how they got there. But their close proximity to the mountains led to the belief that they are somehow connected,” the researchers said.
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