Piece of African Continent Discovered Under Southeast United States
- 10 years ago
A recent study shows a strip of land that runs from Alabama to North Carolina and sits about 9 to 12 miles below the surface of the ocean is left over from Africa. It creates a magnetic variation called the Brunswick Magnetic Anomaly.
Around 250 million years ago, the North American and African continents used to be a connected landmass.
A recent study shows a strip of land that runs from Alabama to North Carolina and sits about 9 to 12 miles below the surface of the ocean is left over from Africa. It creates a magnetic variation called the Brunswick Magnetic Anomaly.
According to Robert Hatcher, a geologist from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville: “There was an attempt to rip away Florida and southern Georgia. So you have a failed rift there. We know there's a suture there between African crust and newer crust from the Appalachians. There are pieces of crust that started in Africa.”
One theory about the Brunswick Magnetic Anomaly suggests it is an even older rift that it was formed by the original collision of two tectonic plates when North America split off from the super continent Pangea.
The magnetic properties of the rock are caused by high concentrations of minerals like magnetite, which give scientists clues about the movement of the outer most layer of our planet’s skeletal structure.
Understanding the movement of the plates can be applied to oil, gas and gold exploration.
Around 250 million years ago, the North American and African continents used to be a connected landmass.
A recent study shows a strip of land that runs from Alabama to North Carolina and sits about 9 to 12 miles below the surface of the ocean is left over from Africa. It creates a magnetic variation called the Brunswick Magnetic Anomaly.
According to Robert Hatcher, a geologist from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville: “There was an attempt to rip away Florida and southern Georgia. So you have a failed rift there. We know there's a suture there between African crust and newer crust from the Appalachians. There are pieces of crust that started in Africa.”
One theory about the Brunswick Magnetic Anomaly suggests it is an even older rift that it was formed by the original collision of two tectonic plates when North America split off from the super continent Pangea.
The magnetic properties of the rock are caused by high concentrations of minerals like magnetite, which give scientists clues about the movement of the outer most layer of our planet’s skeletal structure.
Understanding the movement of the plates can be applied to oil, gas and gold exploration.