Groundbreaking study on volcanic eruptions – How they ultimately played a role in past mass extinctions

Earth’s history has been marked by major volcanic eruptions, some of which caused such climatic and biological upheavals that they led to some mass extinctions on our planet.

Now scientists have shed new light on the timeline and possible cause of these events that happened millions of years ago.

A new study from Trinity College Dublin reveals that the slowing movement of the continental plates was the critical event that allowed magma to rise to the Earth’s surface and cause these disasters.

The surprising discovery is based on chemical data from ancient mudstone deposits obtained from a borehole in Wales.

“Scientists have long believed that the initiation of molten volcanic rock, or magma, from deep in the Earth’s interior was the instigator of such volcanic activity,” said lead author Dr Micha Ruhl, of Trinity College Dublin.

“It appears from the new evidence that only when the speed of continental plate movement slows to near zero, magmas can reach the surface, causing major volcanic eruptions and associated climate disruptions and mass extinctions.”

The world’s largest volcanoes are located in areas called Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs).

These include the Siberian Traps in Russia, which cover more than 500,000 square miles and have been the site of nearly a million years of massive volcanic activity.

The largest eruptions caused significant increases in atmospheric carbon emissions that warm Earth’s climate, led to unprecedented changes in ecosystems, and led to mass extinctions on land and in the oceans.

Computer reconstruction models showed that the slowing of continental plate motion was the key fundamental geological process that appeared to control the timing and initiation of this and other large-scale volcanic events.

“Most importantly, further assessment shows that the reduction of continental plate motion likely controlled the initiation and duration of many of the most important volcanic events throughout Earth’s history, making it a fundamental process in controlling the evolution of climate and life on Earth.” surface of the Earth throughout the history of this planet,” said Dr Rule.

The study helps disentangle the different processes that control the changing global carbon cycle and tipping points in Earth’s climate system.

It could have implications for today – as a sixth mass extinction is already thought to be underway due to man-made global warming.

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