Black folks are no strangers to conspiracy theories and more often than not, our skepticism is warranted. Let’s pray this time we are just strong and wrong. There is much chatter going on after after news of the molten blob underneath the Appalachian mountains… Allow us to explain.
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Right now, there is a burning mass of rock measuring 220 miles wide and 125 miles underneath the ground known as the “Northern Appalachian Anomaly,” and it is headed toward New York, according to scientists. But before anyone starts packing their bags and leaving the Big Apple, the blob is said to move at a pace of 12 miles every million years, according to a report in the Journal Nature.
However, scientists are scratching their heads trying to understand why this blob has been quietly on the move for so long. It was first believed to be a piece of landmass leftover when North America split from Africa, but the theory has been discredited:
“This thermal upwelling has been a puzzling feature of North American geology. It lies beneath a part of the continent that has been technically quiet for 180 million years, so the idea that it was just leftover from when the landmass broke apart never quite stacked up,” said British Geologist Thomas Gernon, according to the Journal Nature.
However, some Black folks online are convinced that this crawling molten rock might just be the start of the end of New York—or human life as we know it. Creators have taken to TikTok to speak about the blob and what it could mean for the future of us.
“Nah, this ain’t normal, y’all. New York is really Gotham City,” said one creator. “They said this anomaly is moving southwards towards New York at a rate of 12 miles per million years. What are they kidding us? Do they really want us to believe that, right? The way that the planet is going right now, the way that all these earthquakes are shaking the earth right now, they expect us to believe this is happening in 12 miles per million years? …The shift is here.”
The comments under the video were filled with a mixture of reactions, with some believing it’s the signs of the rapture [the second coming of Jesus Christ], while others tried to calm folks down.
“Jesus is coming back,” wrote one user with a prayer hands and cross emoji.
“God forgive me,” wrote another.
Many were not buying that the slow-moving molten was really that slow.
“It will reach NY in 10-15 million years from now,” wrote another user with a sarcastic laughing emoji.
“Yeah, it will get there in a million or more years lol,” smirked another.
Outside of the theories growing online, scientists have discovered that the molten anomaly formed 80-85 million years ago, when Greenland split from North America. It is also believed to be one of the reasons why the Appalachians are still in place, as it is helping keep the continental crust buoyant enough to uplift the mountains, according to ScienceAlert, an independently run online news source.
Despite all the theories and speculations, scientists have also assured that the Northern Appalachian Anomaly will not reach New York for at least another 10-15 million years, according to ScienceAlert. So, if you were in the middle of packing your things, you can rest easy knowing you’ve still got some time.
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