Ancient Supervolcano Found Beneath England's East Coast Is Older Than Dinosaurs

Scientists have uncovered evidence of a massive and long-extinct supervolcano, hidden deep beneath England's east coast, the BBC reported. The supervolcano, which is thousands of times more powerful than Mount Etna, is centred beneath the low-lying estuary known as The Wash and stretches across parts of Norfolk and Lincolnshire. The eruption occurred roughly 454.4 million years ago, predating the arrival of dinosaurs by over 200 million years. It unleashed energy equivalent to thousands of hydrogen bombs.

For decades, scientists were puzzled by the origins of the "Kinnekulle tephra," which is an extensive layer of prehistoric volcanic ash preserved in rock formations across Norway, Sweden, Belarus, Poland, and the Baltic region.

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The new study, published in the GSA Bulletin by a team from the British Geological Survey (BGS) and the University of Oslo, finally points to the source.

As mentioned by the outlet, Dr Tim Pharaoh of the BGS said that the discovery was a "fantastic result", as it changes their "understanding of England's deep geological past".

By re-examining rock core samples originally drilled 80 years ago, researchers analysed microscopic zircon and apatite crystals formed in molten magma prior to the blast. The samples were collected from boreholes hundreds of metres deep in North Creake, Norfolk, and Claxby, near Horncastle, Lincolnshire.

"This work is an important step forward in piecing together the geological history of the UK, and understanding that the subsurface is important for lots of reasons linked to our sustainable use of resources, like water and minerals," Prof Jenni Barclay, a University of Bristol volcanologist, said as quoted by the BBC, calling the new findings 'fascinating'.

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What is a "supervolcano"?

The volcano that erupted more than 1,000 cubic km (240 cubic miles) of material is called a supervolcano. As of now, there are about 20 in the world today, including Lake Tabo in Indonesia and Yellowstone in the USA.

When it comes to the latest one, geologists confirm the structure has been dead for hundreds of millions of years, locked safely beneath younger layers of rock and sediment, serving only as a fascinating glimpse into the British Isles' violent geological past.