Scientists have been interested in the origin of life on Earth for decades, which is why researchers from the US Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Cardiff University in the UK have drilled 1,268 kilometres (770 miles) into the Mid-Atlantic Ridge to find evidence deep within the Earth's mantle.
Researchers successfully drilled to a record depth in the Earth's mantle during the JOIDES Resolution Expedition 399 in 2023. The researchers drilled five-meter sections at a time using a rotating barrel drill, then sent a core grabber down the drill string to bring samples to the surface, which they later studied.
The researchers found a wide variation in the mantle minerals, with orthopyroxene ranging from a few centimeters to hundreds of meters, while its sibling, clinopyroxene, is almost completely absent. The researchers attribute these differences to melt flowing through the upper mantle. Effects of oxidative weathering were also found down to depths of 200 meters, a The interaction of seawater and rocks was very active at this depth..
This is very important because the interaction between seawater and mantle rocks releases hydrogen and produces compounds such as methane, which is the basis of microbial life. He writes Professor of Interesting Engineering at Cardiff University. This is one of the hypotheses regarding the origin of life on Earth.
