North and South America move away from Europe and Africa by 4 cm per year

A team of seismologists led by the University of Southampton has found evidence of upwelling in the mantle: it

located at a depth of more than 600 km.under the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and pushes the lithospheric plates from below, causing the continents to move further apart. They found out that we are talking about 4 cm per year: this is how much North and South America moves away from Europe and Africa. 

Over the course of two research cruises, the teamdeployed 39 seismometers on the bottom of the Atlantic. These demonstrations provide the first large-scale, high-quality image of the mantle beneath the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. They are one of the few experiments of this scale ever conducted in the oceans.

Besides helping to develop betterdisaster warning systems and models, plate tectonics also affects sea level and therefore affects estimates of climate change.

It was completely unexpected! Our experiment has broad implications for understanding the evolution of the Earth and its habitability. It is also important to collect new data about changes in the oceans. 

Kate Reichert, PhD, University of Southampton

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