The crust covering the Earth’s surface formed as a result of a slow remodeling process over billions of years, not the result of geological plates emerging relatively quickly, as we currently think, says Jesse Remink, an assistant professor of geosciences at Pennsylvania State University, in his book Recent Research. His innovative way of thinking answers some fundamental questions about our planet and the formation of other planets as well.
The prevailing theory is that there was a turning point 3 billion years ago when static crust was suddenly replaced by tectonic plates. We have proven that this is not the case
Remink concluded.
To analyze the composition of the Earth’s crust, the researchers started from a database of 600,000 rock samples. The researchers examined the stones because the reliability of mineral samples decreases over time. Meanwhile, stones can undergo many transformations, becoming sediments or becoming embedded in the mantle – and researchers have also used new mathematical tools to track these changes.
By examining the composition of igneous rocks, excluding sediments, we counted the number of times they have been reworked
– noted Remnick, who found with his colleagues that the crust follows the contours of the mantle beneath it and is constantly growing. The gradual growth of the crust has already been suggested before, but the research in question is the first to support it through analysis of rock samples.
The specialist added that the study is not a decisive result, but rather aims to reinforce existing ideas. According to Remink, their findings can also be applied to other planets: Venus, which has no tectonic plates, can be considered a similar example to the early Earth. From this perspective, crustal growth played an important role in our life on a habitable planet today.
