Churning mantle may explain the Great Unconformity, a missing span of Earth's rock record

The Great Unconformity is a gap in the geologic record where Cambrian-era sedimentary layers rest directly on much older rocks, with a large span of time missing in between. Researchers suggest that movement in Earth's churning mantle may have played a role in creating this feature. The mantle's convection could have lifted and eroded large areas of rock, removing layers before the Cambrian deposits formed. The explanation offers a possible geophysical mechanism for a puzzle that has long interested geologists. The source article focuses on laying out this proposed explanation of the unconformity.