Mysterious blobs within the Earth have been pictured by scientists who have called them “fascinating and complex” as they try to understand more about them.
It is hoped that the new images will now be able to give a better idea of what the “blobs” are, that can be found 1,864 miles from the surface of the Earth.
The images are part of a study published in Nature Communications and research has been focused on circular-like underground pocket called an ultra-low velocity zone that is located beneath Hawaii.
And now scientists have said that the images could prove a “milestone” in seismology.
Geophysicist Zhi Li, from the University of Cambridge, said: "Of all Earth's deep interior features, these are the most fascinating and complex.
"We've now got the first solid evidence to show their internal structure – it's a real milestone in deep Earth seismology."
Up until now scientists have used a variety of tools and instruments to try and picture the bizarre blobs but the images have not been clear.
The extreme distance from the Earth’s surface has made it a very challenging task.
But this time the images have been made by a computer modelling where data has been taken from signals that have been sent through the Earth’s layers.
And through monitoring the signal responses, scientists have been able to establish from the study that the blob is about a kilometre in size.
Meanwhile, another study earlier this month suggested that some massive blobs, the size of continents at the centre of the Earth, officially known as Large Low-Shear-Velocity Provinces, could be leftovers from a cosmic collision.
These blobs are 100 times taller than Mount Everest and until now scientists have known very little about why they exist, and why they have odd shapes of varying heights, reported the Daily Express.
A team of researchers now believe that these anomalies are actually the remains of Theia, a protoplanet that struck the Earth 4.5 million years ago, in a collision that resulted in the formation of the Moon.
These blobs, which sit below West Africa and the Pacific Ocean, have confounded seismologists for decades.
Sujoy Mukhopadhyay, who was among the scientists to take part in the study at the University of California, highlighted the importance of understanding these lumps, saying: “if these things are truly ancient, it tells us something about how our planet formed.”
