The seafloor is in a constant state of evolution.
Humanity has developed an extensive understanding of how the Earth reshapes itself. However, when a team of researchers dove deep beneath one of the most ecologically diverse regions of the world, they discovered a hidden volcano spewing debris for miles and miles.
How can underwater volcanoes reshape the seafloor with such force?
How the Earth is in a constant state of evolution, even underwater
The Earth, much like the rest of the universe, is in a constant state of change.
Scientists have estimated that roughly 80% of all volcanic activity around the world takes place underwater, specifically under the ocean. And as our technology expands, we are now able to study these underwater boiling pots in great detail.
Satellites have helped to identify more than 43,000 underwater volcanoes.
To be fair, we have only mapped around 16,000 underwater volcanoes. The Tamu Massif is one of the largest collections of oceanic crust and volcanic ridges, covering approximately 119,691 square miles in the Northwest Pacific.
There are two Earths: One we know above ground, and the other is underwater
Human beings have only seriously begun studying the hidden underwater world over the last few decades.
In fact, we know more about space than we do about our own oceans. The pressure that exists deep under the sea’s surface is immense, so powerful in fact that we have struggled to construct any vessels that can handle the astonishing pressure underwater.
We have come to understand that underwater volcanoes reshape the planet.
A recent expedition has filmed a volcano beneath the Pacific Ocean, marking the first time such an event has been captured on camera. The Earth is just like the rest of the universe, constantly changing and reshaping itself.
Above the sea surface, we have the technology to predict when and where certain volcanoes may erupt.
However, the time needed for a wide-ranging evacuation means that some of these warnings from geologists come slightly too late to avert disaster. Underwater volcanoes, however, are a far different story.
A recent study, “Hydrous multi-stage mantle melting controls gold enrichment in mafic Kermadec arc magmas,” published in Nature, has detailed how underwater volcanoes reshape the very planet we live on, almost constantly.
A Kiwi eruption of biblical proportions that stunned geologists
New Zealand is a far-off land filled with a sense of mysticism.
The iconic nation is known for many things. Sport is the main trait of New Zealanders that most of the world knows. However, it is also one of the most ecologically diverse regions of the planet.
Above the sea surface, volcanoes can erupt with little warning, forcing the local populace to evacuate in a panic in most cases.
This became Hawai’i’s reality recently when a massive volcanic eruption forced evacuations and grounded flights around the island. However, a similar volcanic event took place in New Zealand, just under the sea.
A team of researchers detected a huge undersea eruption near the iconic New Zealand island recently.
The huge eruption generated high-velocity “density currents” that reshaped the deep-sea floor in ways we never understood, until now. Utilizing advanced underwater mapping technology, the team was able to document the eruption and subsequent event in great detail.
They were able to track how the underwater avalanche of ash and rock from the volcano carved out canyons and deposited vast amounts of debris on the seafloor.
Scientists have taught us that there is a hidden world underwater that we know very little about. Thanks to studies like this one, we have come one step closer to understanding how the Earth shapes itself, hidden from the prying eyes of humanity above the sea’s surface.