Groundbreaking study suggests India is quietly dividing itself underneath the mighty Himalayas.

In a seismic revelation, a team of geophysicists has unveiled a groundbreaking study proposing that one of the world’s largest countries is undergoing a surprising split. This extraordinary theory, initially presented at the December 2023 American Geophysical Union conference, focuses on the formidable Himalayan mountain range.

The study, titled “Slab tearing and delamination of the Indian lithospheric mantle during flat-slab subduction, southeast Tibet,” led by Lin Liu, Danian Shi, Simon L Klemperer, and their team, delves into the intricate formation of the Himalayas. Spanning five nations—India, Pakistan, Nepal, China, and Bhutan—the Himalayas have long been a geological marvel resulting from the dynamic collision between the Indian Plate and the Eurasian Plate over 50 million years.

The investigation began with an analysis of helium levels in Tibetan springs, revealing a stark contrast between southern and northern Tibet. This discrepancy suggests a groundbreaking development—the Indian tectonic plate is seemingly splitting into two beneath the Tibetan plateau.

Utilizing advanced techniques such as ‘3D S-wave receiver-functions,’ the study unearthed intriguing evidence of the Indian Plate’s orogon-perpendicular tearing or warping. Visualizations showcased the top and lower slabs of the Indian Plate appearing to detach, an unprecedented phenomenon in solid earth science.

The study hypothesizes that the Indian Plate is engaging in ‘underplating’ or ‘subduction’ beneath a ‘mantle wedge,’ with the upper part uplifting Tibet while the lower half descends further into the mantle. This unique behavior challenges previous understandings of how continents can evolve geologically.

Douwe van Hinsbergen, Geodynamicist at Utrecht University, remarked, “We didn’t know continents could behave this way, and that is, for solid earth science, pretty fundamental.” However, Fabio Capitanio, Geodynamicist at Monash University, emphasizes that the data is preliminary, awaiting peer-review for validation.

As the scientific community grapples with this seismic revelation, the study opens the door to a new understanding of geological processes, proving that even the mightiest countries are not immune to Earth’s transformative forces.