A Huge Underground Ocean Has Just Been Discovered Beneath The Earth's Surface!

[Waindo]

This fantastic discovery has "Journey To The Center Of The Earth" written all over it!

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A group of American researchers have discovered a gigantic ocean that its between the earth's crust and core where large reserves of water, about three times as much as on the surface, rests.

Led by Steven Jacobsen of Northwestern University and Brandon Schmandt of the University of New Mexico, the researchers discovered that the water is molecularly trapped inside a mineral called ringwoodite.

This discovery sheds some light on how our oceans formed and maintained their size over millions of years. Most geologists think that water came from space in the form of icy comets, but this new discovery suggests that oceans may have gradually emerged from the depths of the early Earth. “The indications show that the Earth's water came from inside," said Jacobsen. Researchers used 2,000 seismographs to study the seismic waves of some 500 earthquakes and measured their velocity at different depths. These waves moved at different speeds through water than through rocks.

“When a rock with a lot of H2O moves from the transition zone to the lower mantle it needs to get rid of the H2O somehow, so it melts a little bit. This is called dehydration melting," said Brandon Schmandt.

The study was published in the journal Science.

Link to the study ->

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[Horus]

Now I must go watch Journey to the Center of the Earth U_U

 

[Yubel]

If this is true then life on Mars is even more certain.
Some question for us to consider:
-How do we extract this water?
-Are there water inside other planets?
-How to we control the process of releasing that water?
-Is there life beneath the Earth surface where the water is made?
-What creates the water in the first place?


We could use this new information to help countries that don't have clean water.

 

[Waindo]

Now I must go watch Journey to the Center of the Earth U_U

I just clicked "play" right after I've read the study. U_U

 

[Iruka]

Have they actually identified pockets of water beneath the crust, or have they identified magma which suggests the presence of water constituents? I've heard the same story being told differently elsewhere, probably means it's time to make an account so I can get past that pesky registration required wall. I just find this version to be overly sensationalist to the point where it's inaccurate.

Edit:
Despite being "free with registration" the paper still appears to be behind a paywall for me. I might just go off my previous reading.

I was under the impression that ringwoodite did not contain your conventional water (H2O) but rather trapped it in some other hydrous form. If this paper is about observing magma at the depth that dehydration melting occurs then it suggests that there could be hydrous components present. That doesn't mean there is liquid, solid, or even gaseous water flowing like an ocean, though there may be constituent elements capable of being reverted back into water under the right conditions.

The reasoning behind there being three oceans worth of water makes some sense but there are many unknowns being assumed to make that call.

 

[Mel Silvestre]

That's interesting.

 

[Made in Heaven]

Ice Age 3, here we go.

 

[Marin]

Wonder if any new life forms are there. n.n

 

[Dark Sonic]

Wonder if any new life forms are there. n.n

I second this.

 

[Waindo]

Wonder if any new life forms are there. n.n

Most probably yeah. The "regular" ocean is still vaguely explored, and new species are popping up on an daily basis. The species that are discovered on 5-6+km depth survive without any oxygen, so it is to expect that something is able to survive "down there" as well. Life finds a way.

 

[Nobel]

Life finds a way.

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[Waindo]

Have they actually identified pockets of water beneath the crust, or have they identified magma which suggests the presence of water constituents? I've heard the same story being told differently elsewhere, probably means it's time to make an account so I can get past that pesky registration required wall. I just find this version to be overly sensationalist to the point where it's inaccurate.

Edit:
Despite being "free with registration" the paper still appears to be behind a paywall for me. I might just go off my previous reading.

I was under the impression that ringwoodite did not contain your conventional water (H2O) but rather trapped it in some other hydrous form. If this paper is about observing magma at the depth that dehydration melting occurs then it suggests that there could be hydrous components present. That doesn't mean there is liquid, solid, or even gaseous water flowing like an ocean, though there may be constituent elements capable of being reverted back into water under the right conditions.

The reasoning behind there being three oceans worth of water makes some sense but there are many unknowns being assumed to make that call.

They conclude that the mantle transition zone—410 to 660 km below Earth's surface—acts as a large reservoir of water.

The high water storage capacity of minerals in Earth’s mantle transition zone (410- to 660-kilometer depth) implies the possibility of a deep H2O reservoir.

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Oh geez.....The feels....

 

[Iruka]

They conclude that the mantle transition zone—410 to 660 km below Earth's surface—acts as a large reservoir of water.

The high water storage capacity of minerals in Earth’s mantle transition zone (410- to 660-kilometer depth) implies the possibility of a deep H2O reservoir.

That doesn't answer my question. I had already read the click-bait article along with the published abstract when I commented, replying with quotes from those sources doesn't further explain it.

I was hoping that, having read the paper yourself, you would be able to go a bit further into what the study discovered. I've found a copy on ResearchGate and that explained it a bit for me. They talk about an H[SUB]2[/SUB]O reservoir in the transition zone, owing to the presence of "1 to 3 wt % H[SUB]2[/SUB]O storage capacity of the major mineral phases wadsleyite and ringwoodite". Consider that wording. They say ringwoodite has an H[SUB]2[/SUB]O storage capacity despite it being bound as a hydrous ion. That makes it sound more like this reservoir is a large amount of similar hydrous ions.

Consider me rude but I find it misleading that someone who claims to have read the paper would use such a sensationalist article title when the paper has a much more reserved title.

Article I think you got this from: "Researchers Have Discovered A Massive Underground Ocean Beneath The Earth's Surface"​

Academic paper title: "Dehydration melting at the top of the lower mantle"​

 

[Natsu Shazneel]

Do Dinosaurs live there?

 

[Multiply]

Ocean?

 

[The Work]

Now awaken Godzilla.

 

[Waindo]

Ocean?

Suspected to be several times bigger in volume than the "outer" one.

Now awaken Godzilla.

I wouldn't be suprised something similar is lurking down there.

 

[Multiply]

Suspected to be several times bigger in volume than the "outer" one.

Is it an ocean or simply water locked inside of rocks.