The impact that formed the Moon left bubbles that shaped tectonic plates

The Great Impact scientific hypothesis, which reports Earth’s collision with a protoplanet called Theia 4.5 billion years ago, may have revealed more than just the creation of the Moon, a recent study published by three geologists and seismologists from the California Institute of Technology suggests. suggests that this phenomenon may have triggered plate tectonics on our planet.

Mysterious bubbles, scientifically called large low-velocity regions (LLVPs), were left behind during the massive impact, according to the study published in Geophysical Research Letters. This hot, less dense material may have initiated the initial sinking of our planet by pushing down older, denser ocean crust.

A tectonic plate regime, a phenomenon unique to Earth among all known planets, is the tectonic plate regime in which a denser plate sinks beneath a less dense plate at their convergent boundaries. It is the geological process that fuels all earthquakes and volcanoes and also creates the conditions that enable the evolution of life..

How did scientists simulate the formation of tectonic plates?

Using computer models to test their theory, the team showed the different types of effects that LLVPs can cause, to the point that they are responsible for current plate tectonics in the Earth’s crust since the Hadean period. One fact that seismic readings have already revealed is that the materials of LLVPs and the mantle are different.

Models showed that about 200 million years after the Impact, the pressure of LLVPs created hot plumes called bubbles. rose from the core to the surface, causing some parts to sink, i.e. the beginning of sinking on Earth.

Could the impact of large rocks create life through plate tectonics?

In addition to helping explain the ancient mystery of the origin of giant unknown droplets of matter near the center of the Earth, New study also suggests the massive impact “also defined the initial conditions of our Earth”study co-author Qian Yuan told The Washington Post.

After all, the constant movement of tectonic plates facilitates the recycling of chemical elements on the planet. The process, known as a tectonic cycle, not only releases minerals, but the nutrients necessary for life are on the surface. Moreover, the joint operation of the Earth’s crust and mantle may have served as a natural thermostat.

But if all of this, including life, started with the collapse of just one protoplanet, and that was a condition for a planet to support advanced life, So the existence of planets similar to ours may be very rare.. In other words, if the research is correct, the existence of life beyond Earth may even be possible, but unlikely.

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