Researchers Find A Vast "Ocean" Beneath The Surface Of The Earth That Is Larger Than All The Oceans Above Land

Did you know that water covers 71% of the surface of the Earth?

Alright, so perhaps that one was a bit too simple. However, did you know that the Earth’s crust conceals an enormous reservoir of water that is three times larger than the planet’s surface oceans?

Though it may not seem like it at first, scientists found in 2014 that we effectively have a reserve of water concealed beneath our feet.

Not quite accessible, this enormous reservoir of water is located 400 miles below the surface.

Moreover, it is housed inside a blue rock under the Earth’s mantel called “ringwoodite,” which functions as a kind of sponge for that massive volume of water.

Thus, it is a fourth molecular structure of water that is trapped inside the mantle rock rather than a liquid, solid, or gas.

Participating in the historic finding, geophysicist Steve Jacobsen said, “The ringwoodite is like a sponge, soaking up water. There is something very special about the crystal structure of ringwoodite that allows it to attract hydrogen and trap water.”

“This mineral can contain a lot of water under conditions of the deep mantle.”

Scientists from Northwestern University in Illinois made the discovery of the wet rock by measuring the waves produced by US earthquakes with seismometers.

Through their investigation, they discovered that the waves were traveling throughout the planet’s core rather than just the Earth’s surface.

Researchers discovered what kind of rocks the water was being held in by analyzing the depth and speed of those waves, ultimately determining that the water was confined on ringwoodite.

Ringwoodite can have up to 1.5% water, according to research.

Should the molecular composition of the ringwoodite beneath the surface include only 1% water, this implies that the subsurface layer has three times the amount of water compared to the whole surface seas.

This finding supports the idea that Earth’s water “came from within,” as opposed to coming from comets and asteroids, and may aid in the understanding of how Earth was formed.

At the time, Jacobsen gave the following explanation: “I believe that evidence of a whole-Earth water cycle is finally emerging, which could help explain the enormous volume of liquid water on the surface of our habitable planet.

“Scientists have been looking for this missing deep water for decades.”

As of right moment, scientists have only discovered indications of ringwoodite rock beneath the US surface. Currently, Jacobsen and his group are trying to find out if this layer encircles the whole Earth.

Researchers Find A Vast “Ocean” Beneath The Surface Of The Earth That Is Larger Than All The Oceans Above Land

Did you know that water covers 71% of the surface of the Earth?

Not quite accessible, this enormous reservoir of water is located 400 miles below the surface.

Participating in the historic finding, geophysicist Steve Jacobsen said, “The ringwoodite is like a sponge, soaking up water. There is something very special about the crystal structure of ringwoodite that allows it to attract hydrogen and trap water.”

Researchers discovered what kind of rocks the water was being held in by analyzing the depth and speed of those waves, ultimately determining that the water was confined on ringwoodite.

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