tectonic

Regular earthquakes happen when stresses that accumulate as tectonic plates grind together over centuries or millennia are suddenly released, creating intense shaking that lasts only seconds.

This discovery resolves a long-standing geological puzzle: why certain ocean islands located far from tectonic plate boundaries contain chemical signatures that look distinctly continental, even though they lie in the middle of vast oceans.

Earthquakes are common in the country, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range, near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.

The findings reveal that the planet's tectonic plates were far from still, driving changes that produced oxygen-rich seas and the emergence of early eukaryotes -- organisms that would eventually give rise to plants, animals, and fungi.

This slow breakup helps explain puzzling features from Earth's past, such as abandoned fragments of old tectonic plates and bursts of volcanic activity in unexpected places.