Seismic waves reveal how a massive eruption 100 million years ago reshaped an oceanic plate

Scientists using seismic waves have uncovered the complex internal structure of the oceanic plate beneath the Ontong Java Plateau. They found horizontal layers cut through by vast vertical magma channels, and unusually slow seismic waves indicate that deep-rising magma chemically altered the plate itself. The colossal volcanic event that created the plateau occurred more than 100 million years ago and is considered Earth's biggest volcanic episode.

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