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Seismic evidence for a 920-km discontinuity in the mantle

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Abstract

Analysis of hundreds of seismograms from a seismic array in the Japanese islands reveals a seismic discontinuity at a depth of about 920 km in the mantle beneath the Tonga subduction zone. This discontinuity is also evident beneath subduction zones in the Japan and Flores seas. The discontinuity probably represents either a change in mantle chemical composition or the signature of the subducted slab's garnet layer.

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Kawakatsu, H., Niu, F. Seismic evidence for a 920-km discontinuity in the mantle. Nature 371, 301–305 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/371301a0

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