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CURRENT AFFAIRS
Description
A long-lost tectonic plate known as 'Pontus' was discovered by coincidence by scientists studying ancient rocks in Borneo.
About Pontus Tectonic Plate
This is a long-lost and recently discovered tectonic plate in the western Pacific.
The immense tectonic plate is believed to have once spanned around 15 million square miles, the equivalent of around a quarter of the Pacific Ocean.
Its origin dates back 160 million years, and more recently around 20 million years ago.
It was slowly subducted and lost over millions of years, drawn under an adjacent plate by gravity.
How Was The Discovery Made?
The subducting plate is actually denser than the surrounding mantle, so gravity essentially pulls the plate down into the mantle.
A subducted plate leaves traces as it “sinks” into the Earth's mantle, namely fragments of rock hidden in mountain belts.
However, during the process of subduction, the upper parts of the subducting plate are sometimes scraped away.
The researchers used geological data to reconstruct the movements of current plates using computer models, suggesting that a large area could have been cleared by a subducted plate.
Using magnetic techniques, the researchers determined that the basalts of Borneo were Pontus relics, left behind when that part of the plate subducted about 85 million years ago.
About Tectonic Plate
A tectonic plate (also called a lithospheric plate) is a massive, irregularly shaped plate of solid rock typically composed of continental and oceanic lithosphere.
Plate size can vary greatly, from a few hundred to thousands of kilometers in diameter. The Pacific and Antarctic plates are among the largest.
Plate thickness also varies considerably, from less than 15 km for young oceanic lithosphere to around 200 km or more for old continental lithosphere (e.g. the interior parts of North and South America).
Plate Tectonics Theory
Plate tectonics is the theory that the Earth's outer shell is divided into large plates of solid rock called "plates" that slide over the Earth's mantle, the rocky inner layer above the Earth's core.
The solid outer layer of the Earth, which includes the crust and upper mantle, is called the lithosphere. Beneath the lithosphere lies the asthenosphere: a viscous layer kept malleable by heat deep within the earth.
It lubricates the underside of Earth's tectonic plates, allowing the lithosphere to move.
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