Geologists find evidence of the oldest earthquake on Earth

Geologists have found that the rocks of the Barberton greenstone belt in South Africa are similar to those found in earthquake and volcanic zones in New Zealand. After comprehensive analysis, evidence of the first earthquakes that occurred on Earth was discovered there, as well as indications that the belt is where life first developed.

After studying the Barberton Greenstone Belt, a complex geological formation in South Africa, two geologists realized in their study that this belt was remarkably similar to younger rocks in New Zealand, in an area that had experienced subduction-related volcanic eruptions caused by earthquakes along the Hikurangi Subduction Zone in Northland. The northernmost region of New Zealand. The study was published in the Geology Journal.

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Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa

(Photo: Pete Wolter, Shutterstock)

When one tectonic plate collides and sinks under the other, the underlying plates heat up and melt deep within the Earth. These areas are called subduction zones because one of the plates loses part of its mass. These areas are vulnerable to natural disasters, primarily earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.

“The energy released by these earthquakes is so enormous, it shakes the entire region,” Dr Simon Lamb – a geologist from Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and an author of the study along with his colleague Dr Cornel de Ronde from GNS Science – told science news outlet Live Science.

The Barberton Greenstones in the Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains, named for their green colour, provide the most comprehensive geological documentation of Earth, dating back to between 3.2 and 3.6 billion years ago (known as the Paleozoic). The oldest signs of life on Earth were discovered at the site, leading to the area also being called the “origin of life.”

Outside of New Zealand, the Pacific plate — the largest and heaviest tectonic plate on Earth, composed primarily of oceanic crust — is sliding beneath and rubbing against the Australian plate, generating powerful earthquakes that cause subduction-related volcanic eruptions. In these explosions, rocks formed on land and in shallow waters fall into the depths of the ocean, moving from their original location to an entirely new location.

In fact, New Zealand's site is witness to thousands of earthquakes over millions of years, most recently in November 2016, when a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Kaikoura, causing landslides and extensive damage.

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Geological map of the Barberton greenstone belt

(Illustration: Cornel de Ronde)

The Earth formed about 4.5 billion years ago. After it cooled, its outer crust formed, and its surface was covered with oceans. There is no scientific consensus on exactly when plate tectonics began, but the prevailing theory is that it began about 2 billion years ago.

As previously mentioned, subduction zones are not only home to the largest earthquakes, but also the largest volcanic eruptions, such as the January 2022 eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Haapai volcano, which was hundreds of times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, resulting in the strongest The largest thunderstorm ever recorded, with about 200,000 flashes (more than 2,600 bolts per minute).

According to Dr. Lamb, subduction zones created the right conditions for life and allowed it to survive and thrive. “I believe that life is born from this extreme violence,” he said.

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