An international team of scientists has successfully drilled a 1,268 - meter - long mantle core in the Mid - Atlantic Ridge. This is the deepest mantle sample ever retrieved from the ocean floor, mainly composed of serpentinized peridotite, revealing the long - term reaction records between the mantle and seawater.
The research team, consisting of researchers from the UK, the US, China, Japan and other countries, completed this record - breaking drilling at the Atlantis Massif, an underwater mountain west of the Mid - Atlantic Ridge. The cylindrical core sample, with a diameter of about 6.5 cm, provides valuable data for understanding the Earth's internal structure, magmatic activities and the element cycle of the Earth system1. It is of great significance for studying the formation of the Earth's crust and even the origin of life2.
British oceanic geologist Rosalind Coggon said that this drilling achievement is a "milestone". Ocean drilling is the only way to obtain samples from the deep interior of the Earth, which are crucial for understanding the formation and evolution of the Earth. This research was included in Xinhua News Agency's 2024 year - end inventory of "Global Scientific Research Moving towards the Frontiers of the 'Four Poles'", marking a new stage in marine geological research.
