The floor of the ocean off the coast of the Pacific Northwest has gained a leak, known as Pythia's Oasis, and is most likely venting water from below the tectonic plates through a fault called the Cascadia Subduction Zone.
There are reports it is acting as a lubricant between the plates colliding at the fault, and losing enough of it will increase the chances of a damaging earthquake.
It is technically called a spring, and was accidentally discovered by then-grad-student, now-White House-policy advisor Brendan Philip. He noticed the bubbles the spring was carrying to the surface.
“They explored in that direction and what they saw was not just methane bubbles, but water coming out of the seafloor like a firehose. That’s something that I’ve never seen, and to my knowledge has not been observed before."
If the water steeps out of the fault, US cities will be prone to earth-shaking activity.
The Cascadian Subduction Zone is a large strike-slip fault off the coast of the Pacific Northwest.
“The megathrust fault zone is like an air hockey table. If the fluid pressure is high, it’s like the air is turned on, meaning there’s less friction and the two plates can slip. If the fluid pressure is lower, the two plates will lock – that’s when stress can build up.”
If stress begins to pile up, it does have to travel somewhere. When it becomes too much, the system will jerk into a new position which triggers earthquakes.
Scientists are saying it could cause a magnitude-9 earthquake in the Northwestern USA.
Unfortunately, there isn't much us humans can do to stop them behaving how they will. However, monitoring this could help best prepare us for any natural disasters.
“Pythias Oasis provides a rare window into processes acting deep in the seafloor, and its chemistry suggests this fluid comes from near the plate boundary."
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