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Scientists Investigate Strange Rumbling Beneath Utah
Futurism • • science
Key Points:
- In 1979, a mysterious earthquake measuring magnitude 3.8 was recorded over 55 miles below northern Utah, a depth previously thought impossible for seismic activity.
- Recent research by University of Utah scientists Keith Koper and George Zandt confirmed that similar deep earthquakes occur in the Earth's upper mantle beneath the Wyoming Craton, a rigid lithospheric block.
- These deep mantle earthquakes differ fundamentally from shallow crustal quakes, lacking foreshocks and aftershocks, and are linked to slow mantle flow interacting with the craton over millions of years.
- The study highlights gaps in understanding the physics of deep earthquakes, including their potential maximum size, which remains unknown compared to crustal earthquakes.
- The findings underscore the complex tectonic dynamics deep within the Earth and suggest that mantle flow diverted by cratonic roots causes increased strain and seismic activity at depth.
