“This accumulation had to have formed over a period of probably tens of thousands of years,” says Ellis. And, Muceku explains, it was only when the mine cut to depths of around 2,000 feet that hydrogen gas began to escape and cause accidental explosions. The excavations appear to have fractured the roof of a concealed reservoir, one whose deep faults funneled vintage hydrogen from deep within the seafloor slab to the mine above.Exhumed seafloor slabs were always high-priority targets for hydrogen gas hunters—but this study has underscored that notion. Perhaps the beginnings of a new low-carbon, hydrogen-powered era can be found in similar sorts of tectonic sarcophaguses all over the world.That story is just starting to be written. It remains uncertain whether Earth’s natural hydrogen reservoir is big enough for the world’s energy needs. Even if it is found to be the case, the technological means of efficiently extracting this gas—and methods of speeding up its geological production—are prototypical.What matters most is finding those hydrogen reservoirs and, hopefully, finding them full. And right now, geologists are just scratching the surface.“We have to go deeper to see the potential,” says Muceku.
The gas in this exploding mine is odorless, colorless—and could transform the world
