Overview
- The Science study screens more than 46,000 global earthquake records dating to 1990 to isolate mantle-origin events.
- The diagnostic relies on the relative strength of Sn waves in the upper mantle versus Lg waves in the crust to pinpoint sub-Moho sources.
- Researchers confirm 459 continental mantle earthquakes with notable clusters beneath the Himalayas and near the Bering Strait.
- The authors describe the tally as conservative and call for expanded seismic networks, particularly across the Tibetan Plateau.
- These deep events rarely produce strong surface shaking but open a window into the crust–mantle boundary and potential triggers ranging from aftershocks to mantle convection.