Bermuda’s long-standing geological puzzle may have a new answer. Scientists say they have identified a deep, unusually buoyant rock layer beneath the island that appears to help keep it elevated above the surrounding ocean floor, even though its volcanoes have been inactive for more than 30 million years.
The research was led by William Frazer, a seismologist at Carnegie Science, and Jeffrey Park of Yale University.
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Scientists reveal new theory that could solve the Bermuda Triangle mystery after years https://t.co/0Xagv5NfBF pic.twitter.com/DoDNiKOMjm
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Bermuda's built different
For decades, geologists have struggled to explain why Bermuda sits so high above the Atlantic seabed.
The island still rises about 1,600 feet above the surrounding ocean floor, according to Carnegie Science, a height that does not fit neatly with the usual model for volcanic islands.
In that model, a mantle plume — a rising column of hot rock from deep inside Earth — pushes up the seafloor and forms volcanoes. Over time, as tectonic plates move away and volcanic activity fades, those swells usually sink.
Bermuda, however, has remained unusually elevated.
Island’s secret support system deep underground
To investigate, Frazer and Park studied seismic waves produced by large earthquakes around the world. By analysing how those waves moved through Earth and reviewing recordings from a seismic station on Bermuda, they built a picture of the island’s subsurface structure to a depth of about 20 miles.
What they found was a layer of rock more than 12 miles thick beneath the oceanic crust. The layer is less dense than the surrounding mantle, which means it is more buoyant and may function like a raft supporting the island.
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Powered from below for millions of years
The scientists said the formation is known as underplating and likely dates back to Bermuda’s volcanic past tens of millions of years ago.
They think carbon-rich molten mantle rock intruded into the base of the crust and cooled there, creating the dense geological base that now helps support the island.
The material may have originated much earlier in Earth’s history, possibly during the formation of the supercontinent Pangea, according to the report.
Rewriting what scientists know
Frazer said the site is unusual because several of Bermuda’s geological features do not match the classic plume model.
“Bermuda is an exciting place to study because a variety of its geologic features do not fit the model of a mantle plume, the classic way for deep material to be brought to the surface,” he said. He added that the presence of “thick underplating” suggests “there are other convective processes within Earth’s mantle that have yet to be well understood.”
Frazer is now looking for similar structures beneath other islands to see whether Bermuda is an exception or the first example of a broader pattern.
The findings have been published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
