The weight of Hurricane Harvey's flood water was so great that it actually sank the crust on which it sat in some parts of southeastern Texas, according to a NASA earthquake scientist.

Chris Milliner of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, posted a map on his Twitter account showing GPS data that revealed parts of the crust in the Houston area sank by as much as 2 centimeters following the hurricane, which he attributed to the weight of floodwaters. The map was courtesy of the Nevada Geodetic Laboratory.

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Milliner said in a followup tweet that it appears some of the bedrock underneath the soil also subsided due to the weight of the floodwaters. As for how much the crust will rebound after the water drains completely, Milliner said it's too early to know.

It's a bit like jumping onto and then off a mattress, Milliner told a Twitter follower.

Parts of the Houston area have been sinking for years , according to the Houston Chronicle. The report cites data from the U.S. Geological Survey that shows some areas in Harris County have sunk as much as 10 to 12 feet since the 1920s, which makes those locations even more prone to flooding.

Milliner's tweet quickly went viral. By Tuesday morning, it had been retweeted more than 6,000 times.