geoscience

Photo: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

New Analysis of Apollo-Era Moonquakes Shows the Moon Could Be Tectonically Active

Astronauts and Jeff Bezos-types hoping to set up shop on the Moon might have another challenge to worry about: moonquakes caused by tectonic activity. Apollo mission seismometers measured 28 shallow moonquakes between 1969 and 1977 that seemed to lack origin. Researchers re-calculated the epicenters of these quakes and found that eight of them occurred near…

Space & Spaceflight Ryan F. Mandelbaum May 13

Image: Aubert et al./IPGP/CNRS Photo library

Blobs in Earth’s Core Could Be Causing ‘Geomagnetic Jerks’ in the Magnetic Field

Every several years, magnetic field observatories record quick changes to the position or strength of the planet’s magnetic field, so-called geomagnetic jerks. The cause of these shifts has remained a mystery. Improvements to ground-based observatories and more magnetic field measurements from satellites have given scientists new insights into the planet’s magnetic behavior. Though we can’t…

Earth Science Ryan F. Mandelbaum Apr 23

‘Dark’ Fiber Optic Cables Can Measure Earthquakes

Scientists hope to employ networks of “dark fibers,” unused fiber optic cables, in order to sense sound waves moving underground—the signals of earthquakes. Some millions of miles of fiber optic cable lay unused beneath the ground. Researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and the University of California, Berkeley tested out a new technique that could…

Earth Science Ryan F. Mandelbaum Feb 5

The Earth Sciences Are White AF

We already knew this, but let me repeat it for those in the back: The academic world of Earth science is white AF. A new commentary published in Nature Geoscience Monday reminded the world of this simple and disappointing truth. About 86 percent of geoscience Ph.D.s awarded in the U.S. from 1973 to 2015 went…

Environmental Justice Yessenia Funes Apr 30

Why Did Montana Experience a Powerful Earthquake Last Night?

Last night, planet Earth rumbled in a place where it usually doesn’t rumble: Montana. But it also rumbled in the Philippines. Come to think of it, it rumbled in Vanuatu and Japan too. The Earth rumbles a lot. Folks were especially surprised by the earthquake with a magnitude of 5.8 in Montana. Why? Well, we’re…

Tech News Ryan F. Mandelbaum Jul 6

Why Did an Enormous Chunk of West Antarctica Suddenly Start Melting?

300,000 square miles is nearly twice the area of California. It’s difficult to visualize a space that vast, but go ahead and give it a try. Now, imagine this California plus-sized chunk of land is covered in thousands of feet of ice. Then, all of a sudden, that frozen fortress becomes a wading pool. In…

Tech News Maddie Stone Jun 18

Earth’s Collision With Another Planet Probably Started Life

Researchers from Rice University say that around 4.4 billion years ago, a Mercury-like planet smashed into Earth, seeding our primordial planet with life-giving carbon. Had this never occurred, it’s an open question as to whether or not life could have ever emerged. Geoscientists have struggled to explain how life was able to arise on Earth…

Space & Spaceflight George Dvorsky Sep 6

Bear Maulings and Helicopter Crashes: True Tales of Field Science

Every geoscientist in North America has a favourite story of helicopters, bears, or both, but these epic field stories take it up a notch to nearly incredible. They also highlight how much field safety has improved in just a generation. Any time your pilot is leaning out the door to see the trees through the…

Tech News Mika McKinnon Jun 16

This Is A Very Classy Geologist With A Very Simple Tent

Judging from this photograph, Camp No.1 on the Ochlockonee River in Florida is the best-dressed field camp I’ve ever seen. This dashing geoscientist was at a United States Geologic Survey field camp in 1907 to 1908. Top image: Unnamed geoscientist at Camp No. 1 along the Ochlockonee River between 1907 and 1908. Credit: USGS The…

Tech News Mika McKinnon May 14

Striking It Rich Required Hard Work At The Turn Of (Last) Century

Back in 1904, placer miners combed the Shoshone River for any trace of precious metals. With gold and silver found nearby, long days and hard work sorting through stream deposits had the chance of paying off big. Top image: Placer miners sort through alluvial deposits along the Shoshone River near Ralston in Park County, Wyoming…

Tech News Mika McKinnon Apr 9

Why Are Sea Levels Dropping In Places Closest To The Melting Glaciers?

Our dynamic planet has an apparent paradox: the more ice melts from landlocked glaciers, the lower the sea level gets in nearby areas. How does this happen? Through the physics of isostatic rebound, when the surface of the planet acts as an elastic sheet dimpling and rebounding under changing loads. Perito Moreno Glacier in Argentina…

io9 Mika McKinnon Feb 9

Why America Has Stronger Forest Fires Than Elsewhere In The World

Forest fires are a danger in many places in the world. But, even when comparing similar forests, North America’s fires are still stronger, hotter, smokier, and faster than fires elsewhere. Why? The answer is hidden deep in the forests themselves. Researchers from the Woods Hole Research Center recently undertook a large-scale survey of forest fires,…

io9 Ria Misra Feb 4

Planet Earth In Infrared, At 4k Resolution

Here’s something you don’t see every day: An ultra-HD time-lapse of Earth, as seen in infrared. James Tyrwhitt-Drake is perhaps best known for his stunning microscopy work (this matryoshka-like GIF of a scanning electron microscope zooming in on an amphipod, a diatom, and, finally, a microscopic bacterium is a favorite of mine), but the University…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Jan 31

Humanity Is In The Existential Danger Zone, Study Confirms

The Earth’s climate has always changed. All species eventually become extinct. But a new study has brought into sharp relief the fact that humans have, in the context of geological timescales, produced near instantaneous planetary-scale disruption. We are sowing the seeds of havoc on the Earth, it suggests, and the time is fast approaching when…

io9 James Dyke – The Conversation Jan 18

Scientific Sushi Art Is The Best Sushi Art

Japanese chef Takayo “Tama-cha” Kiyota uses carefully arranged food to create cross-sectional sushi-roll art. Her subjects include everything from popular iconography to Japanese demons, but I’m particularly impressed by the rolls with some scientific flair. This single roll depicts different stages of embryological development, depending on where it’s cut. Other sciences represented in Kiyota’s sushi…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Jan 15

The Hottest And Coldest Temperatures Allowed By Conventional Physics

You’ve probably heard of absolute zero, but what do you call the opposite end of the temperature spectrum? This visualization from the BBC starts with absolute zero and ends with “absolute hot” (the temperature “above which conventional physics breaks down”). Between the two, you’ll find thermal milemarkers for things like the eruption temperature of volcanic…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Jan 11

This Impact Crater On Mars Is Just Two Years Old

Mars is covered in craters. Most of them are very old. The one you see here is, at most, two years and four months young – certified fresh, in cosmic terms. Photo Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona Scientists keep pretty close tabs on Mars’ terrain. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which has been orbiting the planet since…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Jan 9

Here’s A Peek At Research From This Year’s Massive Geoscience Meeting

Every December, geoscientists descend on San Francisco for the American Geophysical Union annual meeting. It’s the time for announcements big and small over a daunting diversity of topics. Summarizing the breadth of research is an exercise in futility, so instead, here’s a tiny taste of what was shared. Seismometers are being used to monitor the…

Tech News Mika McKinnon Dec 20

Your New Desktop Wallpaper: A Fetching Geological Map Of The Arctic

Via Natural Resources Canada comes a gorgeously detailed geological map of the Arctic, served up hot and fresh for all your wallpaper needs. You can download the massive, original, 27MB-map here, along all the accompanying charts, legends, etc. Below is a browser-friendlier version of the entire map, which you can download by clicking expand. Below…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Dec 11

California’s Ongoing Drought Is Its Most Severe in 1,200 Years

A recent study published by the American Geophysical Union concludes California’s ongoing megadrought is the worst the state has seen in more than a millennium. Photo Credit: Robert Couse-Baker | CC BY 2.0 “While 3-year periods of persistent below-average soil moisture are not uncommon,” geoscientists Daniel Griffin, of the University of Minnesota, and Kevin Anchukaitis,…

io9 Robbie Gonzalez Dec 4

geoscience

New Analysis of Apollo-Era Moonquakes Shows the Moon Could Be Tectonically Active

Blobs in Earth’s Core Could Be Causing ‘Geomagnetic Jerks’ in the Magnetic Field

‘Dark’ Fiber Optic Cables Can Measure Earthquakes

The Earth Sciences Are White AF

Why Did Montana Experience a Powerful Earthquake Last Night?

Why Did an Enormous Chunk of West Antarctica Suddenly Start Melting?

Earth’s Collision With Another Planet Probably Started Life

Bear Maulings and Helicopter Crashes: True Tales of Field Science

This Is A Very Classy Geologist With A Very Simple Tent

Striking It Rich Required Hard Work At The Turn Of (Last) Century

Why Are Sea Levels Dropping In Places Closest To The Melting Glaciers?

Why America Has Stronger Forest Fires Than Elsewhere In The World

Planet Earth In Infrared, At 4k Resolution

Humanity Is In The Existential Danger Zone, Study Confirms

Scientific Sushi Art Is The Best Sushi Art

The Hottest And Coldest Temperatures Allowed By Conventional Physics

This Impact Crater On Mars Is Just Two Years Old

Here’s A Peek At Research From This Year’s Massive Geoscience Meeting

Your New Desktop Wallpaper: A Fetching Geological Map Of The Arctic

California’s Ongoing Drought Is Its Most Severe in 1,200 Years

‘Good Omens’ Season 3 Is Still Just One Episode, Despite Being Called That

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