A tectonic plate might be peeling in two off the coast of Portugal

Coast of Portugal
(Image credit: FRANCISCO LEONG / AFP / Getty Images)

Off the coast of Portugal, there lies a rather unremarkable stretch of ocean. The ocean floor that lies beneath is smooth and basically featureless — but instead of being boring, that's exactly what makes it interesting.

Because in 1969, a giant earthquake originated in that stretch of the sea, causing a tsunami. Earthquakes are normally caused when the different tectonic plates of the Earth's crust shift and bump against one another. But here, there is no fault line to be found.

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The top and bottom layers of this tectonic plate appear to be separating, announced a team of scientists led by João Duarte, a marine geologist at the University of Lisbon in Portugal. National Geographic explained that this new work, if confirmed by further research, would be the first evidence towards a scientific theory that the Atlantic Ocean, over a long period of time, may actually shrink in size.

While the idea has been floated before, this team is the first to provide hard data — they tested it out with computer simulations, and are hoping to write up their research to be published. Learn more at National Geographic.

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Shivani is the editorial assistant at TheWeek.com and has previously written for StreetEasy and Mic.com. A graduate of the physics and journalism departments at NYU, Shivani currently lives in Brooklyn and spends free time cooking, watching TV, and taking too many selfies.