Scientists Want to Search for Life Deep Below the Earth’s Surface – Futurism

In Brief A team of researchers from Japan's Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology's want to drill into the Earth's mantle in the 2020s. The goal is to understand volcanic phenomena and to see if there's microbial life deep below the planet's crust. Digging Deep

Theres still much to be discovered about the Earth, from the deep seas which has been likened to our very own deep space to the planets rocky layers. A team of scientists from Japans Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) wants to explore the Earths mantle by drilling into it for the first time, using its largest drilling ship called Chikyu.

The JAMSTEC team wants to start drilling by the 2020s. To do this, they need to explore potential underwater drill sites. This September, a two-week preliminary study to find such asite will be done by JAMSTEC deep-sea research vessel Kairei in the waters northeast of Hawaii, according to The Yomiuri Shimbun. Other candidate drill sites have been identified in Mexico and Costa Rica, in case the one in Hawaii wont work.

There are still issues to be resolved, particularly the cost, said petrology professor Susumu Umino from the Kanazawa University. The research team estimates that around 60 billion (roughly $542 million) would be needed for the project. However, the preliminary study will be a big step forward for this project to enter a new stage, Umino added.

The decision to drill through the oceanic crust is a practical one, as its thinner (around 6 kilometers [4 miles] thick) than the continental crust. To reach the mantle, the Chikyus drill must pass through 4 km (2.5 miles) of water and 6 km (3.7 miles) of crust.

The Earths mantle is located beneath the crust, and comprises about 80 percent of the planets total volume. Its a flowing silicate rocky shell thatis known to affect volcanic activity. As such, one practical consequence of exploring the mantle is to be able to understand such surface phenomena. Theresearchers also want to understand how the crust was formed by investigating the boundary between oceanic crust and the Earths mantle.

Apart from this, the scientistsalso want to find out if microbial life could survive deep inside the planet. Such a discovery could yield information useful in the search for extraterrestrial life, as theconditions inside the Earths mantle could simulate those found on other worlds.

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Scientists Want to Search for Life Deep Below the Earth's Surface - Futurism