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The Mohorovičić discontinuity, usually referred to as the Moho, is the boundary between the Earth's crust and the mantle. The Mohorovičić discontinuity was first identified in 1909 by Andrija Mohorovičić, a Croatian seismologist, when he observed the abrupt increase in the velocity of earthquake waves (specifically P-waves) at this point. Ophiolites are sections of oceanic crust and possible mantle rock that have been obducted into the continental crust during plate collisions.
The interior Earth location of the Mohorovičić discontinuity varies between about 5 km beneath the mid-ocean ridges to approximately 75 km beneath continental crust.
During the late 1950s and early 1960s, there was a proposal taken up in the executive committee of the National Science Foundation to drill a hole through the ocean floor to reach this boundary. However the operation, named Project Mohole, never received sufficient support and the proposal was cancelled by US Congress in 1967.
Moho in popular culture
The Mohorovičić Discontinuity is mentioned in one particular computer game, an RTS called "Total Annihilation." Players can build a "Moho Mine" in order to mine metal at or close to the Mohorovičić Discontinuity.
Also mentioned in Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, though it is not Earth's Mohorovičić Discontinuity. Players can construct "Boreholes" which extract minerals and energy (two of the games three resources) from far below the Moho.
Also mentioned in Star Control II, though it is again not Earth's Discontinuity. The Mycon, a fungal, subterranean race, refer to themselves as "the dwellers in the Mohorovichic *."
The Mohorovičić Discontinuity is also mentioned in the novel 'Abduction' by Robin Cook, in which a team of scientists are abducted by inhabitants of an underground civilization.
See also
References
- Harris, P., 1972, 'The composition of the earth', in Gass, I.G., Smith, P.J., and Wilson, R.C.L. (eds), Understanding the Earth: A Reader in the Earth Sciences. The Open University Press.
- Schlumberger Oilfield Glossary
External links
Mohorovičićev diskontinuitet | Mohorovičićova diskontinuita | Mohorovičić-Diskontinuität | Mohorovičići eralduspind | Discontinuidad de Mohorovičić | Moho | Discontinuità di Mohorovičić | תחום אי הרציפות מוהו | Moho paviršius | Mohorovičić-discontinuïteit | モホロビチッチ不連続面 | Nieciągłość Mohorovičicia | Descontinuidade de Mohorovicic | Mohorovičićova diskontinuita | Mohorovičićeva nezveznost | Điểm gián đoạn Mohorovičić | Mohorovicic Süreksizliği | 莫氏不連續面
"Mohorovičić discontinuity"