The region where the earthquake struck is geologically active. The shaking was caused by movement in the Tyrrhenian Basin, a seismically active area beneath the Mediterranean Sea. Here, the ground is actually spreading apart,
A new study suggests that plate tectonics -- the dynamic processes that formed Earth's mountains, volcanoes and continents -- began about 3 billion years ago. By analyzing trace element ratios that correlate to magnesium content in ancient Earth's crust, the researchers provide first-order geochemical evidence for when plate tectonics first got underway.
