The volume of water dispensed on US soil by Hurricane Harvey was so vast it caused the Earth’s crust to give way and sink under the weight.

Around 33 trillion gallons of water was left behind by the hurricane — four times the amount left by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The flooding added around 275 trillion pounds of weight to the landmass of the southern US region, according to calculations by The Atlantic.

Chris Milliner, a geoscientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, says this caused the Earth’s crust to warp and sink by two centimetres.

He tweeted a map of Houston, Texas, the worst affected area hit by flooding, which shows the phenomenon.

GPS data collected from stations around the city detected the area had been depressed under the weight of the extreme floods caused by Harvey.

Milliner replied to questions on Twitter to explain how it occurs.

The phenomenon, he said, is the result of sitting water caused by flooding rather than rain.

Although it is possible some of the subsidence around Houston is the result of soil compacting, some of the measurements were taken from stations situated on bedrock, which shows the Earth’s crust did give way.

In addition, it is possible the Earth’s crust around Houston will gradually spring back to its original position over time, but this is not certain.

The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Show all 19 1 /19 The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey A tattered U.S. flag damaged in Hurricane Harvey, flies in Conroe, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Lisa Rehr holds her four-year old son Maximus, after they lost their home to Hurricane Harvey, as they await to be evacuated with their belongings from Rockport, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey People line up for food as others rest at the George R. Brown Convention Center AP Photo/LM Otero The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Volunteers with The American Red Cross register evacuees at the George R. Brown Convention Center Reuters/Nick Oxford The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Soldiers with the Texas Army National Guard help the residents of Cyprus Creek Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Residents wade through floodwater Reuters/Nick Oxford The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Residents walk along the flooded roadway of Texas 249 as they evacuate their adjacent neighborhoods EPA The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey A man floats past a truck submerged on a freeway flooded by Tropical Storm Harvey on Sunday AP The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey People are rescued by airboat as they evacuate from flood waters from Hurricane Harvey in Dickinson, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey James Archiable carries his bike through the flooded intersection at Taylor and Usenet near downtown Houston, Texas EPA The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey A massive sinkhole opened up on a motorway in Rosenburg, a city 25 miles southwest of Houston, Texas Rosenberg Police The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey People are rescued from flood waters from Hurricane Harvey in an armored police mine-resistant ambush protected vehicle in Dickinson, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey People are rescued from flood waters from Hurricane Harvey on a boat in Dickinson, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Evacuees are airlifted in a US Coast Guard helicopter after flooding due to Hurricane Harvey inundated neighborhoods in Houston, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Evacuees leave a US Coast Guard helicopter after being rescued from flooding due to Hurricane Harvey in Houston, Texas Reuters The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Residents look on at a submerged motorway during a break in the rain in Houston, Texas EPA The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey People photograph the submerged motorway interchange EPA The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Debris lies on the ground after a building was destroyed by Hurricane Harvey in Aransas Pass, Texas AP The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey Dominic Dominguez searches for his boat in a boat storage facility that was heavily damaged by Hurricane Harvey near Rockport, Texas EPA

Hurricane Harvey made landfall in in the southern US at the end of August, killing more than 80 people and causing severe flooding, which displaced tens of thousands.

It is expected to be the costliest natural disaster in US history, surpassing the record set by Katrina in 2005.