News of the Weird: Giant Ocean Under Asia

[Lemur]

This is pretty darn strange. I thought the heat of the earth's mantle cooked most water out of rocks after a certain depth. Seems I was wrong. There's a huge reservoir of water under Asia, so when the water wars begin, we must invade Mongolia post-haste!

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

Huge Underground "Ocean" Found Beneath Asia

Richard A. Lovett for National Geographic News
February 27, 2007

A giant blob of water the size of the Arctic Ocean has been discovered hundreds of miles beneath eastern Asia, scientists report.

Researchers found the underground "ocean" while scanning seismic waves as they passed through Earth's interior.

But nobody will be exploring this sea by submarine. The water is locked in moisture-containing rocks 400 to 800 miles (700 to 1,400 kilometers) beneath the surface.

"I've gotten all sorts of emails asking if this is the water that burst out in Noah's flood," said the leader of the research team, Michael Wysession of Washington University in St. Louis.

"It isn't an ocean. [The water] is a very low percentage [of the rock], probably less than 0.1 percent."

Given the region's size, however, that's enough to add up to a vast amount of water.

Earthquakes Reveal "Ocean"

Wysession and former graduate student Jesse Lawrence discovered the damp spot by observing how seismic waves from distant earthquakes pass through Earth's mantle.

The wet zone, which runs from Indonesia to the northern tip of Russia, showed up as an area of relatively weak rock, causing the seismic waves to lose strength much more rapidly than elsewhere (see map of Asia.)

The water got there by the process of plate tectonics, in which sections of the Earth's crust shift. This process caused the ocean bottom to be pulled beneath continental plates all around the Pacific Rim.

Normally, Earth's internal heat bakes the water out of the rocks before it gets more than 60 miles (100 kilometers) deep. The water then escapes upward as volcanic gas.

But along the eastern Pacific Rim, conditions allow the rock to be drawn much deeper before the moisture is cooked out.

[Grey_Fox]

Not really an ocean, just watered-down rock?

[Seamus Fermanagh]

Still, seismic analysis indicates there's quite a lot of water down there. Moreover, it is not part of the crust, but quite a bit deeper -- where it has always been assumed that it has been cooked out.

We learn new things every day.



However, you can still rest assured that human agency as the primary source of global warming is a demonstrated fact. Other scientific evaluations of climate are obviously wrong.

[Fisherking]

Still, seismic analysis indicates there's quite a lot of water down there. Moreover, it is not part of the crust, but quite a bit deeper -- where it has always been assumed that it has been cooked out.

We learn new things every day.



However, you can still rest assured that human agency as the primary source of global warming is a demonstrated fact. Other scientific evaluations of climate are obviously wrong.

Yes, every day we are stunned by something we didn't know before or something we thought was so that wasn't after all.

Thus my siggy thingy…though, it never seems to make an impact on the brain-dead.

[BDC]

There must be water deeper than 100km down. I was under the impression it was the presence of water which allowed plate tectonics to function (lubricant). Hence why Venus doesn't have active plate movement (no water).

[GoreBag]

I was actually just researching this as this article came up.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

There must be water deeper than 100km down. I was under the impression it was the presence of water which allowed plate tectonics to function (lubricant). Hence why Venus doesn't have active plate movement (no water).

No, it's the high temperature and pressure that distorts the layer of rock below the plates. They aren't floating.


Misleading thread title lemur

[Shaka_Khan]

This is pretty darn strange. I thought the heat of the earth's mantle cooked most water out of rocks after a certain depth. Seems I was wrong. There's a huge reservoir of water under Asia, so when the water wars begin, we must invade Mongolia post-haste!

There's something about Asia.

[dacdac]

so, Jules Verne was right all along. interesting, very interesting. Mongolia is the best Asian country for me. Once you cross off all the countries who have either attacked the U.S., hate Christians, or hate white people, Mongolia is all that's left.

[Crazed Rabbit]

What about India? And Japan has been pretty friendly since WWII. I'm sure there's some others...

Oh, and should water wars erupt, I'm taking over the Fraser river. Apply now to be minions with your own domains!

CR

[Lemur]

so, Jules Verne was right all along. interesting, very interesting. Mongolia is the best Asian country for me. Once you cross off all the countries who have either attacked the U.S., hate Christians, or hate white people, Mongolia is all that's left.

They will greet us as liberators. No, I mean it this time ...

[ShadesPanther]

Once you cross off all the countries who have either attacked the U.S., hate Christians, or hate white people, Mongolia is all that's left.

Luxemburg.

But they are just biding their time....

[Shaka_Khan]

Once you cross off all the countries who have either attacked the U.S., hate Christians, or hate white people, Mongolia is all that's left.

What about Ukraine, Australia, Thailand, etc.?

[dacdac]

I was referring to the previous sentence,, which says Mongolia would be the best Asian country. then i said once you cross off the ones that blah blah blah, only Mongolia woud be left. I meant out of the Asian coutries.

[Papewaio]

Once you cross off all the countries who have either attacked the U.S., hate Christians, or hate white people, Mongolia is all that's left.

....

I was referring to the previous sentence,, which says Mongolia would be the best Asian country. then i said once you cross off the ones that blah blah blah, only Mongolia woud be left. I meant out of the Asian coutries.

Well only Japan has attacked the US.

That leaves the rest of Asia or about 1/3 of the worlds population.

Taiwan has no issues with Christians (the Green party... which is the main contender to KMT... has a large Christian faction). They don't hate white people, in fact for some girls there a white guy is like have an YSL or other high end label fashion bag... pure status symbol.

Singapore, same as anywhere else.

Indonesia, a muslim country which doesn't have issues with Christians (one of the major mosques was designed by a Christian) or white people (except those who don't make an effort to learn the local language, not sure when the French snuck in to teach them that attitude )

etc etc etc.

[Louis VI the Fat]

There's a huge reservoir of water under Asia, so when the water wars begin, we must invade Mongolia post-haste!

Tsk, it's teh Americans starting wars for scarce water recources when they actually have plenty of their own.



Not only middle-Asia, but also Texas and Alaska have huge reservoirs of underland water reserves. If only Americans would cut down the use of their water-guzzling, oversized bathroom and kitchen appliances they'd be far less dependent on foreign imports.

[dacdac]

Originally posted by luigi IV di Fatlington
Not only middle-Asia, but also Texas and Alaska have huge reservoirs of underland water reserves. If only Americans would cut down the use of their water-guzzling, oversized bathroom and kitchen appliances they'd be far less dependent on foreign imports.

Actually, if only those stupid Greenpeace environmental groups would let us! If it wasn't for them and over seas jobs, then America could be completely self sufficient. Ex.-oil from alaska and texas. but no says the environmental groups, and the Democrats dont like it either. If you want unemployement percentage to go down, let us (the intelligent people) use the resources our country can provide.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Tsk, it's teh Americans starting wars for scarce water recources when they actually have plenty of their own.



Not only middle-Asia, but also Texas and Alaska have huge reservoirs of underland water reserves. If only Americans would cut down the use of their water-guzzling, oversized bathroom and kitchen appliances they'd be far less dependent on foreign imports.

Well that makes sense. Rock that can hold oil can hold water.

*wonders if there's oil under asia*

[Xiahou]

There's a huge reservoir of water under Asia

Look out for shoggoths.

[Marshal Murat]

NUKE THEM!


I really think that if the water began steaming due to internal heat, then the ground would sink as the rocks were slowly dropped. It's like the world would be ending.