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BBC News1 min read
Globally significant volcanic event formed Giant’s Causeway, scientists find
TL;DR
Scientists have determined that the Giant’s Causeway was formed by intense volcanic activity, not by the legendary giant Finn McCool. This volcanic event occurred about 60 million years ago and was linked to geological processes observed as far away as Greenland.
Key points
- Giant's Causeway formed by volcanic activity
- Formation linked to a globally significant volcanic event
- Took approximately 5.5 million years to form
- Previously estimated formation time was 8 million years longer
- Event recorded in rocks as far away as Greenland
Mentioned in this story
Giant's CausewayNorthern IrelandGreenland
Finn McCoolBenandonner
For centuries, the tale has been passed from generation to generation: how the Irish giant Finn McCool built the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland to fight Benandonner, his Scottish rival, by hurling chunks of the Antrim coastline into the sea.
Now, scientists have revealed it was intense volcanic activity during a “major globally impacting volcanic event” – and not a legendary battle between two destructive giants – that led to the formation of the coastline’s 40,000 distinctive interlocking basalt columns about 60m years ago.
Geochronologists investigating how the Giant’s Causeway was created have discovered it was formed over 5.5m years, 8m years less than previously estimated.
They also found the processes that formed the Giant’s Causeway were linked to a globally significant volcanic event recorded in rocks as far away as Greenland.
The basalt columns of the Giant’s Causeway make up a listed Unesco world heritage site. Photograph: by Andrea Pucci/Getty Images
For the first time, they were able to definitively connect the first lava flows on the Northern Irish plateau to the same volcanic activity that formed the giant basalt columns in Fingal’s Cave on the Scottish Hebridean island of Staffa – rocks that were previously thought to have formed millions of years after the Causeway.
Rock formations on the nearby Mourne mountain range and on the Hebridean isle of Rùm, as well as magmatic activity on Skye, can also be linked to this volcanic activity, placing the formation of the Giant’s Causeway within a more precise, global geological context for the first time and enabling scientists to create a new timeline for volcanic activity across Northern Ireland.
Dr Simon Tapster, a geochronologist at the British Geological Survey (BGS), said: “Fundamentally, what we’ve done is by piecing together this tapestry of volcanic rocks all across the North Atlantic, but focusing on Northern Ireland, we have been able to reassess a major globally impacting volcanic event.
“In doing that, and in reassessing the timescales, we have shown that actually it occurred in a much shorter duration.”
Q&A
What caused the formation of the Giant's Causeway?
The Giant's Causeway was formed by intense volcanic activity during a major globally impacting volcanic event.
How long did it take for the Giant's Causeway to form?
The formation of the Giant's Causeway took approximately 5.5 million years, which is 8 million years less than previously estimated.
What is the significance of the volcanic event linked to the Giant's Causeway?
The volcanic event that formed the Giant's Causeway is significant as it was recorded in geological formations as far away as Greenland.
How does the Giant's Causeway relate to Irish folklore?
Irish folklore attributes the creation of the Giant's Causeway to the giant Finn McCool, who supposedly built it to confront his Scottish rival.
