Ocean Deep beneath our feet — about 600 kilometers below the surface

Ocean Deep beneath our feet — about 600 kilometers below the surface

Deep beneath our feet — about 600 kilometers below the surface — scientists at Northwestern University found signs of something extraordinary: a hidden ocean locked inside the Earth’s mantle.

They didn’t drill down to it. Instead, they listened. By studying seismic waves from over 500 earthquakes across a network of 2,000 seismographs, they noticed the waves slowing as they passed through certain rocks. That slowdown revealed the secret: water trapped inside a mineral called ringwoodite.

And the scale is staggering. Even if just a fraction of that rock holds water, it could equal two to three times all the oceans we see on the surface today.

This discovery changes the way we think about Earth’s water cycle. Oceans aren’t just on the surface — they may stretch deep into the planet itself, hidden in places we never imagined.

#geography #discovery #facts #earthscience #ocean