Scientists discover massive mountains under Earth’s crust

  1. A team of researchers from USA and China has discovered a new layer with massive mountains in the earth’s mantle. The layer lacks a formal name and is being addressed as the “660 kilometers boundary”. The recent discovery is expected to give new insights on the formation and evolution of Earth.
  2. The researchers had used data from Bolivia Earthquake, 1994 – the second largest earthquake ever recorded (8.2 on Richter scale).
  3. Using the data, the researchers have discovered mountains, as well as other topography on a layer located 660 kilometers downwards that separates the upper and lower mantle.
  4. The earth is generally classified into three layers: a) crust- The outermost layer of the earth, b) mantle which lies between the crust and the core and is divided into upper and lower mantle and c) core- the deepest zone of the earth which is again divided into the outer and inner core.