NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, Oct. 14. The Europa Clipper mission will conduct a detailed investigation of Jupiter’s moon Europa to determine whether there are places below its icy surface that could…
Tag: Geology
Outstanding Graduate Students selected for Department of Energy Office of Science Research Program
A total of 62 PhD students from 24 states have been selected for the prestigious Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program.
How a salt giant radically reshaped Mediterranean marine biodiversity
A new study paves the way to understanding biotic recovery after an ecological crisis in the Mediterranean Sea about 5.5 million years ago.
Matching dinosaur footprints found on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean
An international team led by SMU paleontologist Louis L. Jacobs has found matching sets of Early Cretaceous dinosaur footprints on what are now two different continents. In terms of their geological and tectonic plates contexts, these dinosaur fossils were found to be almost identical.
Can coal mines be tapped for rare earth elements?
A team of geologists led by the University of Utah analyzed 3,500 samples taken in and around coal mines in Utah and Colorado. Their findings open the possibility that these mines could see a secondary resource stream in the form of rare earth metals used in renewable energy and numerous other high-tech applications.
DOE’s Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program Selects 86 Outstanding U.S. Graduate Students
The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Science has selected 86 graduate students representing 31 states and Puerto Rico for the Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program’s 2023 Solicitation 2 cycle.
Chula Geologists Find New Evidence of Historic Human Activity on Khao Phanom Rung-Khao Plai Bat, Buriram
Prof. Dr. Santi Pailoplee, Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, in collaboration with the Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn University, discovered a large number of rocks and rock formations on Khao Phanom Rung-Plai Bat, Chaloem Phra Kiat District, Buriram Province, which geologically signify human activity in the past, not natural formation.
Early-stage subduction invasion
Our planet’s lithosphere is broken into several tectonic plates. Their configuration is ever-shifting, as supercontinents are assembled and broken up, and oceans form, grow, and then start to close in what is known as the Wilson cycle.
The ties that bind
In a study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, WashU researchers discovered that a common mineral called goethite — an iron-rich mineral that is abundant in soils that cover the Earth — tends to incorporate trace metals into its structure over time, binding the metals in such a way that it locks them out of circulation.
Why did Earth once turn into a giant frozen snowball? Australian scientists now have an answer
Australian geologists have used plate tectonic modelling to determine what most likely caused an extreme ice-age climate in Earth’s history, more than 700 million years ago.
Finding Argoland: how a lost continent resurfaced
Geological puzzle solved after seven years of research
Plate tectonic surprise: Utrecht geologist unexpectedly finds remnants of a lost mega-plate
Utrecht University geologist Suzanna van de Lagemaat has reconstructed a massive and previously unknown tectonic plate that was once one-quarter the size of the Pacific Ocean. Her colleagues in Utrecht had predicted its existence over 10 years ago based on fragments of old tectonic plates found deep in the Earth’s mantle.
A real “rock star” moment: New mineral named after Argonne materials scientist Kanatzidis
Mercouri Kanatzidis, an Argonne and Northwestern University materials scientist, has studied sulfur-containing materials called chalcogenides for more than 30 years. A new chalcogenide mineral has just been named for him.
Study confirms age of oldest fossil human footprints in North America
New research reaffirms that human footprints found in White Sands National Park, New Mexico, date to the Last Glacial Maximum, placing humans in North America thousands of years earlier than once thought.
Rising “snow” deep in the Earth
Researchers have gained important insights about mysterious structures 1,800 miles below the Earth’s surface—and how they may be connected to volcanoes.
Researchers unearth the mysteries of how Turkey’s East Anatolian fault formed
An international team led by the University of Minnesota Twin Cities has, for the first time, accurately determined the age of the East Anatolian fault, allowing geologists to learn more about its seismic history and tendency to produce earthquakes.
Frenchman Mountain Dolostone: 500 Million-Year-Old Grand Canyon Rock Layer Finally Gets A Name
In a new report published this spring in the Geological Society of America journal Geosphere, a UNLV-led research team outlines how it identified and bestowed a moniker upon a previously unexplored 500 million-year-old Grand Canyon formation: The Frenchman Mountain Dolostone.
Chula Geologist and Team Discover New Evidence Pointing to Possible Existence of More Ancient Structures Hidden on Khao Phanom Rung
Chula geology professor and team of surveyors discovered foreign materials, suspected to be “terracotta”, in the center of Khao Phanom Rung (Phanom Rung Mountain) forest, Buriram Province. The discovery provides significant evidence indicating that Prasat Hin Phanom Rung is not the only ancient building hidden on Khao Phanom Rung.
New studies push back evidence for open habitats in Africa by more than 10 million years
Using rigorous and detailed collection methods, a University of Minnesota Twin Cities-led research team was able to place the remains of fossil apes, such as Morotopithecus, within detailed habitat reconstructions.
Where Did Earth’s Water Come From? Not Melted Meteorites, According to Scientists
A new study published today in the journal Nature brings scientists one step closer to knowing how or when massive quantities of water arrived on earth.
Robot provides unprecedented views below Antarctic ice shelf
With the help of an underwater robot, known as Icefin, a U.S.-New Zealand research team has obtained an unprecedented look inside a crevasse at Kamb Ice Stream — revealing more than a century of geological processes beneath the Antarctic ice.
Virginia Tech expert comments on latest earthquake to strike Turkey and Syria
Residents of Southern Turkey were again jolted by a new earthquake Monday, this trembler reported by the U.S. Geology Survey (USGS) as 6.3 in magnitude. News reports state that scores of buildings that were damaged in powerful quakes on February 6 have been further damaged or outright collapsed. Virginia Tech’s Robert Weiss, who studies natural hazards, calls the devastating trio of earthquake “unusual,” but not “impossible.
Powerful earthquake hits Turkey and Syria – media experts available for comment
Dr Carmen Solana, course leader for MSc Crisis and Disaster Management at the University of Portsmouth:https://www.port.ac.uk/about-us/structure-and-governance/our-people/our-staff/carmen-solana Available for Zoom/Skype/WhatsApp interviews “Earthquakes cannot be accurately forecast, so prevention of the consequences depends on the country’s preparedness, such as earthquake resistant infrastructure, and…
Mistaken fossil rewrites history of Indian subcontinent for second time
Scientists discovered the first-ever Dickinsonia fossil in India two years ago, changing our understanding of how the continent came to be. Now, new research shows the “fossil” was just a beehive all along, changing our understanding for a second time, and the original scientists now support the new findings.
Research reveals new links behind climate change in Australia
Cornell College Professor Rhawn Denniston and a team of collaborators have combined stalagmites and climate model simulations to reveal links between monsoon rains and tropical cyclones (called hurricanes in the U.S.) in Australia.
Bringing the field to students with ‘Virtual Field Geology’
The Virtual Field Geology project has many goals: to make geology field experiences accessible to more people; to document geological field sites that may be at risk from erosion or development, to offer virtual “dry run” experiences and to allow scientific collaborators to do virtual visits to a field site together. While the pandemic brought new urgency to the project, its developers believe it’s part of a “new normal” for geology research and education.
Evolution of tree roots may have driven mass extinctions
IUPUI scientists have found evidence that the evolution of tree roots over 300 million years ago triggered mass extinction events through the same chemical processes created by pollution in modern oceans and lakes.
FSU assistant professor earns early career award from Geological Society of America
For his work helping to arrange that many-pieced, time-shifting puzzle, the Geological Society of America has named Florida State University Assistant Professor Richard Bono as the 2022 recipient of the Seth and Carol Stein Early Career Award in Geophysics and Geodynamics. Bono is the first person to receive the award.
Secrets from space: Advanced Photon Source helps illuminate the journey of a 4 billion-year-old asteroid
An international collaboration of scientists has published results of their studies into the makeup and history of asteroid 163173 Ryugu. These results tell us more about the formation of our solar system and the history of this nearby neighbor.
Researchers find crucial evidence to explain anomalously fast convergence between India and Asia in Mesozoic
Closure of the Neo-Tethys Ocean and the subsequent formation of the Tibetan Plateau is one of the most significant tectonic events on Earth.
Which Forces Control the Elevation of Mountains?
Scientists have come up with a new classification scheme for mountain belts that uses just a single number to describe whether the elevation of the mountain belt is controlled mainly by weathering and erosion or by properties of the Earth’s crust, i.e., the lithospheric strength: the “Beaumont number” (Bm).
Geoscience technology company founded by MIT/WHOI Joint Program student awarded $3.8M from U.S. Department of Energy
Eden, a geoscience technology development company co-founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program student Paris Smalls, will receive $3.8 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).
News from the climate history of the Dead Sea
The lake level of the Dead Sea is currently dropping by more than one metre every year – mainly because of the heavy water consumption in the catchment area.
Let’s talk about the 1,800-plus ‘young’ volcanoes in the U.S. Southwest
The landscape of the southwestern U.S. is heavily scarred by past eruptions of monogenetic volcanoes, and a new study marks a step toward understanding future risks for the region.
Some of the world’s oldest rubies linked to early life
While analyzing some of the world’s oldest coloured gemstones, researchers from the University of Waterloo discovered carbon residue that was once ancient life, encased in a 2.5 billion-year-old ruby.
What is soil made of?
Weathering of rocks and organic matter important in soil formation
Geological cold case may reveal critical minerals
Researchers on the hunt for why cold eclogites mysteriously disappeared from geological records during the early stages of the Earth’s development may have found the answer, and with it clues that could help locate critical minerals today.
Space odyssey: Argonne scientists among the first to study asteroid fragments
Argonne scientists at the Advanced Photon Source are among the first to study tiny fragments of near-Earth asteroid 162173 Ryugu, collected by a Japanese space mission. These fragments could tell us long-hidden secrets about how our planet and solar system were formed.
What lies beneath: Volcanic secrets revealed
Lava samples have revealed a new truth about the geological make-up of the Earth’s crust and could have implications for volcanic eruption early warning systems, a University of Queensland-led study has found.
Volcanic eruptions may have spurred first ‘whiffs’ of oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere
A new analysis of 2.5-billion-year-old rocks from Australia finds that volcanic eruptions may have stimulated population surges of marine microorganisms, creating the first puffs of oxygen into the atmosphere. This would change existing stories of Earth’s early atmosphere, which assumed that most changes in the early atmosphere were controlled by geologic or chemical processes.
Understanding Antarctic ice historic changes could reveal future changes
The Antarctic Ice Sheet, Earth’s southern polar ice sheet, has grown and receded and grown again over millions of years.
Volcanoes acted as a safety valve for Earth’s long-term climate
Scientists at the University of Southampton have discovered that extensive chains of volcanoes have been responsible for both emitting and then removing atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) over geological time.
Muddied waters: sinking organics alter seafloor records
The remains of microscopic plankton blooms in near-shore ocean environments slowly sink to the seafloor, setting off processes that forever alter an important record of Earth’s history, according to research from geoscientists, including David Fike at Washington University in St. Louis.Fike is co-author of a new study published in Nature Communications.
New research suggests explosive volcanic activity on Venus
Traces of the gas phosphine point to volcanic activity on Venus, according to new research from Cornell University.
In lonely desert landscapes, hunting for clues about pyroclastic surges
The history of pyroclastic surges is written in the landscapes they ravage. Volcanic dunes and other deposits hold debris from ancient eruptions, as do craters marking sites of ancient blasts. This study focuses on Ubehebe and El Elegante.
Flinders Ranges virtual tourists to be ‘teleported’ into the deep past for World Heritage bid
Sir David Attenborough has named it one of his favourite places on Earth, and the world will soon see why via an immersive virtual tour of the iconic Flinders Ranges.
Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research Issue Features Undergraduate Research in Community Colleges
The spring 2021 issue of Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research (SPUR), the academic journal of the Council on Undergraduate Research, focuses on dynamic programs and initiatives advancing undergraduate research in community colleges.
Denniston awarded NSF grant to study climate change
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a nearly half-million-dollar research grant to Cornell College Professor of Geology Rhawn Denniston and a team of researchers to study climate variability.
Hidden within African diamonds, a billion-plus years of deep-earth history
Diamonds are sometimes described as messengers from the deep earth; scientists study them closely for insights into the otherwise inaccessible depths from which they come.
Geologist Karen G. Havholm Re-elected as Treasurer of the Council on Undergraduate Research
Karen G. Havholm—former asst vice chancellor for research and sponsored programs, and former director of the Center of Excellence for Faculty and Undergraduate Student Research Collaboration at UW–Eau Claire—has been elected to a second term as treasurer of the Council on Undergraduate Research.