Scientists discover deep pulses under Africa

Deep in Africa, the heart of the earth is beating.

The researchers found that molten rocks pulsed upwards from the inside of the earth, gradually tearing the continent apart and forming a rhythm that eventually became a new ocean. This finding suggests that these mantle plumes, like geological heartbeats, carry different chemical characteristics when rising toward the surface.

The study was published in the distant region of Ethiopia in natural earth science, a rare place where three huge tectonic rifts gather together. Using advanced statistical modeling and more than 130 volcanic rock samples, the scientists mapped the structure of an asymmetric plume that pulsed under the rift, such as blood flowing through arteries of various sizes.

Geological barcode

The team found that the mantle produces different chemical bands that recur throughout the rift system – geographic barcodes that tell the story of deep processes. These patterns differ in spacing, depending on local tectonic conditions, providing unprecedented insights into how the Earth’s interior communicates with its surface.

“We found that the mantle below the distance is not uniform or fixed – its pulses, which carry different chemical characteristics,” explained lead author Dr. Emma Watts, who conducted research at the University of Southampton. “The ascending pulses of these partially melted mantle are directed by the crack plate above.”

The pulses behave differently according to the thickness and diffusion rate of the upper structure plate. In faster rift valleys such as the Red Sea, pulses travel more efficiently, similar to blood flowing through narrow arteries.

Three Rift Valleys, one source

The distant area presents a unique natural laboratory where three major rifts meet:

• Red Sea Rift Valley: Spread 10.5-19.5 mm per year
• Aden Rift: The oldest started about 35 million years ago
• Major Rift Valleys in Ethiopia: The smallest one, which started 11 million years ago, is spread about 5.2 mm per year
• Crust thickness: From 16 kilometers of the Red Sea to 33 kilometers of the Ethiopian Rift Valley

Despite the different characteristics, all three rifts show evidence provided by the same basic mantle uplift. The team’s statistical analysis of 14 key geochemical and geophysical variables confirmed that a single, chemically heterogeneous plume best explains the observed patterns.

Deep in the heart

The study’s co-author, Professor Tom Gernon of the University of Southampton, highlights the dynamic nature of these deep processes: “Chemical bands indicate plume pulses, like heartbeats. These pulses seem to depend on the thickness of the plate, as well as the thickness of the plate, and how quickly it separates.”

This study reveals how overlaid tectonic plates actually affect the behavior of ascending forests. Thicker, slower plates produce a “bottleneck” effect that compresses spatial patterns of chemical heterogeneity, while thinner, faster plates can flow more efficiently.

Advanced statistical modeling using principal component analysis and K-mean clustering showed that the same chemical characteristics appeared in different rift arms, indicating evidence of rhythmic behavior of shared pulse-mantle from the same depth source.

Understand the influence of the earth

This discovery challenges previous assumptions about how the inside of the earth works. This study is not a static, uniform rise, but rather a dynamic response system that closely interacts with the surface construction process.

Co-author Dr. Derek Keir noted that the broader significance: “We found that the evolution of ascending plants in deep mantle is closely related to the movement of the plates above. This has profound implications for how we explain surface volcanism, seismic activity and continental cleavage processes.”

This work involves international collaboration between 10 institutions, combining expertise from the University of Southampton, Swansea, Italian and German universities, as well as research centres in Ireland and Ethiopia.

The future of the ocean

These pulsating ascending plants have actually made Africa stand out for millions of years. As the tectonic plates stretch and thin like soft plasticine, they eventually burst, marking the birth of a new ocean basin. The distance is this process in action, providing scientists with a window to understand how the new ocean is formed.

This study also provides insights into volcanic activity and seismic patterns, as mantle flow helps focus on volcanic plates, with the thinnest tectonic plates. Understanding these deep processes can improve predictions of geological hazards in areas of the mainland split areas.

As Dr. Watts concluded, this work shows that “tidying up a complete picture” requires collaboration across disciplines and institutions, combining different technologies to understand the complex processes that occur under our feet.

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