Scientists Found Something Extraordinary On Their Way To The Center Of The Earth

Some believe that our knowledge of space is now greater than our understanding of what exists beneath Earth’s surface. And while many people know about the space race that gripped the United States and the U.S.S.R. during the Cold War, few remember the equally fascinating battle to conquer our subterranean world.

Beginning in the late 1950s, competing teams of American and Soviet scientists began organizing elaborate experiments. They had the same goal: to dig as far into the Earth's crust as they possibly could. If you're wondering what exactly was so compelling about dirt and rocks, the answer lies miles and miles beneath the Earth's surface.

Though it may not hold the same mystique as the cosmos, the Earth's crust is not as boring as you'd think. Thought to stretch as far as 30 miles towards the center of our planet, this dense shell eventually gives way to the mantle – the mysterious inner layer that makes up a staggering 40 percent of our planet’s mass.

So, in 1958, the U.S. took the lead in the digging race with the launch of Project Mohole. Located near Guadalupe in Mexico, the operation saw a team of engineers drill through the bed of the Pacific Ocean to a depth of over 600 feet. However, eight years later their funding was cut, and Project Mohole was abandoned. The Americans never got to the mantle.

Next, it was the Soviets’ turn. On May 24, 1970, a team of researchers began drilling down into the Earth below the Pechengsky District, a sparsely populated region on Russia’s Kola Peninsula. Their goal was simple: to penetrate as far as possible into the planet’s crust. And they didn't want to dig a measly 600 feet like the Americans.

The Soviets aimed to reach a depth of some 49,000 feet under Earth’s surface. So, using specialist equipment, researchers began to dig a series of boreholes forking off from a single principal cavity. But while they slowly made their way down, prospectors in America had made some progress of their own.

In 1974 the Lone Star Producing Company was drilling for oil in Washita County in Oklahoma. In the process, the firm created the “Bertha Rogers hole” – a man-made marvel that reached over 31,400 feet, or nearly six miles, below the surface of the Earth. Clearly, the Americans weren't giving up the Rock Race without a fight.

Lone Star never found what it was looking for, but its effort produced what was the deepest hole on the planet — for five years. Then, on June 6, 1979, one of the Kola boreholes, dubbed SG-3, smashed the record. And in 1983, the hole, a mere nine inches wide, traveled a staggering 39,000 feet into Earth’s crust.

With this milestone achieved, researchers on the Kola Peninsula temporarily downed tools. For 12 months, they paused work on the borehole so that various people could visit the fascinating site. However, when the experiment was restarted the following year, a technical problem forced drilling to grind to a halt.

Not to be defeated, the researchers abandoned the previous borehole and began again from a depth of 23,000 feet. And in 1989, the drilling reached a record 40,230 feet deep – an incredible 7.5 miles. Encouraged, those involved in the project were optimistic about the future, believing that the hole would pass 44,000 feet in late 1990.

Even more impressively, it was predicted that the borehole would reach its target of 49,000 feet as early as 1993. But something unexpected was lurking beneath the remote Russian tundra. And bizarrely, as the drill inched closer and closer to Earth’s center, a complete change occurred.

For the first 10,000 feet, temperatures inside the borehole had more or less adhered to what the researchers had expected to find. However, after that depth, the level of heat shot up much faster. And by the time the drilling neared its target, the hole had heated up to a whopping 180 °C (356 °F) – a full 80 °C (176 °F) hotter than anticipated.

That wasn’t all. Additionally, the researchers discovered that the rock at these depths was far less dense than they had imagined. As a result, it reacted to the higher temperatures in strange and unpredictable ways. For one, the rock took on an almost plastic texture, which made drilling nearly impossible.

Despite having drilled thousands of feet into the past, the researchers knew their drilling journey to the center of the Earth was over. Their equipment would not last with the plastic-like rock and extreme heat, so the team at Kola abandoned the project. This was in 1992 – 22 years after drilling had first begun. That doesn't mean the mission was a bust, however.

Researchers were able to learn some fascinating things before sealing up what has been dubbed the Kola Superdeep Borehole. For example, at some four miles deep, they discovered tiny fossils of marine plants. These relics were remarkably intact given how long they had spent encased below several miles of rock that itself was thought to be over two billion years old.

An even more exciting discovery was made at the farthest reaches of the Kola Superdeep Borehole, though. By measuring seismic waves, experts had previously predicted that the rock under our feet shifts from granite to basalt at around two to four miles beneath the surface. However, they soon found that this was not the case – at least not on the Kola Peninsula.

Instead, researchers found only granite, even at the deepest point of the borehole. They didn't see that coming. This discovery helped them learn that the change in seismic waves was the result of metamorphic differences in the rock, rather than a shift to basalt. But their most staggering discovery was when they stumbled upon flowing water several miles beneath the Earth's surface.

But while some enthusiastic commenters have jumped on this discovery of subterranean water as proof of biblical floods, this phenomenon is believed instead to be the result of strong pressure forcing oxygen and hydrogen atoms out of the rock. Afterward, impermeable rocks caused the newly formed water to become trapped beneath the surface.

The timing of the Kola Superdeep Borehole’s closure coincided with the fall of the Soviet Union, and in 1995 the project was permanently shut down. Today, then, the site is flagged as an environmental hazard, although visitors can still see some interesting relics from the experiment.

In the nearby town of Zapolyarny — some six miles away from the Kola Superdeep Borehole — people can still see remnants from the experiment, including the boreholes, which have been welded shut. And, impressively, researchers have yet to beat its record, meaning the borehole remains the planet’s deepest man-made point. Still, we bet that the researchers still wonder what could've been...

If we had dedicated decades of our lives to reaching the Earth's core, we'd want to know that it was worth it! So what exactly is waiting for humans at the center of the Earth? Humans haven't made it there yet, but some brave explorers have made some headway by embarking on truly daring expeditions hundreds of feet below the Earth's surface.

In 2019 six explorers packed their gear and headed to southern New Mexico, home to the Carlsbad Caverns. Max Wisshak, Shawn Thomas, Hazel Barton, Beth Cortright, Andy Armstrong, and James Hunter had devised an exploration plan and presented it to the Carlsbad Caverns National Park’s Cave Resources Office. The office approved, and the exploration was on.

Wisshak and his team knew the stakes of their mission. One of the most famous cavern systems in the U.S., Carlsbad Caverns National Park spans 70 square miles and contains more than 80 caves. The system was created 250 million years ago when enormous marine predators dominated the ever-changing planet.

Native peoples first discovered the caves. Before colonizers forced Indigenous peoples off their lands, the Zuni Pueblo and Mescalero Apaches were exploring the Carlsbad Caverns themselves. Once the tribes were gone, the caves were forgotten for years — who knows what happened after all those years?

Once Carlsbad was rediscovered, photographer Ray V. David helped popularize the system in 1923. His pictures of the caverns excited the government, and they declared it a national monument that same year. Seven years later, the system was designated as a national park. With the park protected by bureaucracy, even fewer explorers were allowed inside.

Soon, the cave was just another attraction. Tourists flocked to see the "Bat Cave." Every summer, millions of bats fly in and out of the cave mouth. The cave myosis and fringed myosis bats roost deep in the cave and then fly 1.5 miles to the exit. In total, there are 17 different bat species that call the park home. Wisshak and his team, though, weren't interested in bats.

One of the spots that fascinated Wisshak and his crew was the Lechuguilla Cave. This cave is the second deepest in the continental U.S. and the eighth-longest explored cave in the world, but this wasn’t discovered until 1984. The first modern group to make their way down started in the ‘50s. They encountered something almost supernatural.

This group found a bunch of tunnels with dead ends. Eventually, they reached what they thought was the end of the cavern and were hit with a blast of wind deep underground. They couldn’t find the source, even though they heard the wind whistling in from somewhere. 

No one else explored Lechuguilla until 1984. A Colorado caving team obtained permission from the National Park Service to see if they could discover more of the mysteries hidden below. Their work led to 150 miles of passages and chambers being added to the official Lechuguilla maps.

The caves didn’t just interest scientists, in 2002 journalist Michael Taylor decided he wanted to see what was in Lechuguilla himself. For the PBS show Nova, Michael and a team of spelunkers took their own trip into the cave. From Michael’s account, it was a rough journey.

“We lay 1,200 feet, more or less, beneath the desert, down countless rope pitches and miles of tortuous passage from the single entrance to Lechuguilla Cave,” Michael wrote. “The cave’s constant humidity, which had kept us sweating for hours as we made our difficult way down, now leached away warmth.” 

“We stank of the day’s work, our funk blending with Lech’s peculiar soil-and-metal odor,” Michael wrote. “My bare arms and legs… were caked with soil, sweat, and blood from inevitable encounters with sharp rocks, along with gritty bits of white aragonite that we had acquired while squeezing through a tight formation-lined tube.”

These accounts were well studied by Max Wisshak and his crew. But the call of exploration was too strong. There was over 250,000 years of history to the Carlsbad Caverns, and very few people so far had ventured deep enough into the twisting caverns and passageways. There was a real possibility to discover something never seen by humans — good or bad.

One geologic feature that stood in the team’s way was the Lake of Liquid Sky. We absolutely love the feeling of mystery the name brings. Humans had located the underground pool since 1993, and the 2019 team wasn’t allowed to let the liquid graze their skin.

Max and the rest of the cavers wore safety suits to keep the liquid from reaching them as they crossed the 50 feet of water. Luckily, it was only 5 feet at its deepest point. Once they made it through the water, they saw “350 feet of spacious and highly decorated passage.”

The scientists sketched the passages to keep track of them, along with recording them on DistoX. This is a hand-held device that looks like an old palm pilot used to digitally map the cave passages. With their DistoX and old-fashioned pen and paper, they tracked their findings.

There were rare minerals hiding on the other side of the Lake of Liquid Sky. They didn’t see any dragons guarding the yellow and blue barite crystals, which seems surprising on some level. The barite, of course, had to inspire the newly explored region: Barite Boulevard.  

The Kansas City Star went wild over the researcher’s work. In June 2020 a reporter wrote that the team stumbled upon a “pool surrounded by white frosted rock and filled with an odd-looking liquid that resembles thick lime yogurt.” That description was oddly very accurate.

Rodney Horrocks, the Chief of Natural and Cultural Resources at Carlsbad Caverns National Park gave credence to the yogurt quote. “This pool has been isolated for hundreds of thousands of years and had never seen light before that day,” Rodney said. The yogurt pool drew plenty of interest from newspaper readers.

Max eventually jumped in to clarify that his team didn’t wade through lime yogurt, the cave’s odd lighting cast a green tint on the water, which was actually “crystal clear.” The “white frosted rock” was really white barite crystals. The reason they couldn’t touch the water didn’t have anything to do with it being dangerous.

“Such untouched pools are scientifically important because water samples are relatively free of contaminants and the microbial organisms that may live in those pools are only those that belong there,” Max wrote. The environment was so specialized that the scientists could have accidentally thrown off the ecosystem.

Max wanted to completely ensure audiences understood that “a newly discovered pool in Lechuguilla Cave is about as pristine as it gets.” In total, they spent eight full days underground and examined 4,000 new feet of passages. Slowly but surely, we're beginning to better understand what's deep underground. And those discoveries range from intriguing to terrifying.

In 2016, this voodoo doll-like sculpture was found inside a cave in the Catskill Mountains. The hikers that found it reportedly felt strange supernatural energy when they got close. They snapped a photo and posted it to Reddit with the hope of someone knowing what it was. To this day, it remains a mystery.

At one point, many caves throughout the world housed ancient civilizations, and this handprint artwork proves it. Discovered in an Argentinean cave, the humans who lived here created this art using red chalk powder. Amazingly, scientists determined this primitive painting to be 9,500 to 13,000 years old!

Roughly 500,000 years ago, a river carved out this cave in China. Known as the Reed Flute Cave, the unique rock formations here reflect shades of blue and purple light all over the interior walls. And, for all you history buffs, during World War II, Chinese soldiers actually used it as an air-raid shelter.

Although this footprint might excite Bigfoot enthusiasts everywhere, cryptozoologists should sit back down. In the '60s, 400 of these prints were found in Romania's Ciur-Izbuc Cave. Thanks to radiocarbon measurements, scientists determined that Homo sapiens left them over 35,000 years ago!

New Zealand is already one of the most gorgeous countries on the planet, but this cave, located in Waitomo, may just put it at the very top of the beauty list. Visitors take kayaks through the 30-million-year-old cavern to gawk at thousands of phosphorescent worms dangling off the walls. It's like experiencing the universe underground!

Deep in the caves of Slovenia and Croatia lives this vibrantly colored amphibian known as the Olm Salamander. This bizarre little chap is completely blind and uses something called electro-sensation to effectively explore its surroundings. Even more bizarre is the fact that although it's an amphibian, the Olm Salamander also has gills that allow it to survive completely underwater.

One of the most mysterious and well-preserved caves in the world is located in Cornwall, England. Dating back to 500 B.C., visitors have emerged with bizarre stories of strange light movements, odd sounds, and life-changing visions that rivaled those of ancient religious texts.

Mineral-rich water is what creates the stalagmites and stalactites we see so often in caves. But, the water is also the cause of these "cave pearls." Calcite-laden liquid drips from the cave ceilings onto the dirt below, and over time the clumps solidify into smooth, round rocks.

It's not unusual to find small areas of water inside caves, but rarely does anyone come across an entire lake. Located just off the Greek island of Melissani, the Melissani Lake offers visitors crystal clear water completely surrounded by looming rocks.

At first glance, this black stuff looks like mold growing on cave walls. But look closer — it's actually thousands of bats! The Barangay Tambo in Samal Island has tons of caves, and the one in this photo houses the Monfort Bat Sanctuary.

A team of construction workers making their way into a Brazilian cave was unexpectedly greeted by this behemoth reptile! At 33 feet long, this snake was the longest ever found. It beat out the previous record-holder — a snake named Medusa from Kansas City, Missouri — by nearly ten feet!

Hundreds of these strange structures created from stalactites and stalagmites were found in a cave in France. Although researchers can't be absolutely sure what they were used for, they believe Neanderthals may have arranged the formations in specific ways for ritualistic gatherings.

These enormous crystalline structures were found in a cave in Naica, Mexico. Besides the crystals themselves being an incredible find, the scientists who explored the area also discovered thriving life! Samples of bacteria were apparently living off the iron and magnesium present in the structures, which led the team to believe that life may be able to flourish in conditions way tougher than previously thought.

In the ocean surrounding the Bahamas, there are a number of these dark blue circles that lead deep underwater. The dark shade of blue is due to the entrances trapping light and reflecting it back into the surrounding water. Who knows what kinds of sea beasts might dwell in these?

Located in northwest Georgia, Ellison's Cave is the twelfth-deepest in the United States. In order to get to this terrifying 586-foot drop, you have to first navigate through 12 miles of nearly pitch-black twists and turns. It's not for the faint of heart, but for those who love to spelunk, it's certainly a bucket-list adventure.

There's a pretty obvious — and gross — explanation for this cave substance's name: it looks like gooey strands of, well, mucous! The strands act as mosquito strips and trap insects who come in contact with them. This icky discovery was first made in caves in Tabasco, Mexico.

Because of the pitch-black darkness most cave creatures live in, evolution has given them some very unique traits. Many of the fish, for example, are completely blind, but they have the ability to sense even the slightest pressure changes in water through their central nervous systems.

At first glance, the structure in this photo almost looks like it could be a human that turned to stone as they were gazing out across the water. It's just a stalactite, of course, but the Jeita Grotto in Lebanon holds the longest in the world at 27 feet!

Scientists in Indonesia were awed when they came across this cave that once housed a new — and incredibly tiny — species of humans. Standing at only three feet tall, the Homo floresiensis were almost like ancient Hobbits. It's a mystery as to why they died out, but fingers might just point to an ancient Sauron.

This cave located in Israel's Judean Desert was apparently home to the Dead Sea Scrolls. Unfortunately, researchers believe someone stole the scrolls long ago, though the cave still contained manuscripts written on papyrus and animal skin that dated back to the fourth century B.C. when it was discovered.