https://phys.org/earth-news/earth-sciences/ en-us The latest news on earth sciences and the environment Every summer, communities across northern Australia brace for the tropical cyclone season. Tropical cyclones draw their power from the warm seas, extracting heat and moisture from ocean water. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-sea-turtles-eye-storm-cyclone.html Earth Sciences Fri, 03 Jul 2026 09:00:02 EDT news702281162 Europe's summer heat wave has exposed tens of millions of people to temperatures above 35°C, broken records and claimed hundreds of lives. Early climate attribution studies suggest Europe's event would have been "virtually impossible" just 50 years ago without human-caused climate change. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-climate-severe-zealand-homes-ready.html Earth Sciences Fri, 03 Jul 2026 08:40:07 EDT news702281041 The Congo River is the second-largest river in the world, releasing an average of 40,000 cubic meters of water per second into the Atlantic Ocean. This huge discharge rate creates a large plume of fresh water that fans out 800 kilometers (500 miles) offshore. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-congo-river-freshwater-day-atlantic.html Earth Sciences Fri, 03 Jul 2026 07:20:04 EDT news702225861 When NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System, or CYGNSS, launched into orbit in 2016, none of the University of Michigan Engineering researchers who developed the system expected it to transform earth science. They certainly had high hopes for the system's original mission to improve hurricane forecasting, but its ability to pick up reflected GPS signals also proved useful for much more. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-satellite-constellation-earth-science-creatively.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 19:40:04 EDT news702210017 Many of the boulders scattered across the Swiss landscape did not originate where they now stand. Instead, they were carried by ice nearly 24,000 years ago. For the first time, researchers at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) have reconstructed the journeys of these giant rocks across the entire Alpine region using a simulation. The model makes it possible to visualize the paths taken by millions of rocks that helped shape today's landscapes. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-simulation-reveals-glaciers-alps-years.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 19:20:05 EDT news702225721 Prescribed fires are vital for reducing wildfire risk and sustaining forest biodiversity. But they also contribute significantly to air pollution and smoke exposure, according to new research from the University of Georgia. The issue is especially pertinent to the southeastern United States, where 60% of all prescribed fires in the country occur. More than 20% of the fine-particle pollution in the southeastern U.S. can be attributed to prescribed burns, the study found. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-generate-fine-particle-pollution-southeastern.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 16:20:01 EDT news702221281 One seismometer is often not enough to reliably detect earthquakes or human activity such as underground nuclear tests. Rather, researchers combine readings from seismometers distributed across a small geographic area to gain confidence in their analysis. Artificial intelligence (AI) can combine readings from multiple sensors more effectively than classic technology, enabling more reliable detection of weak seismic signals, a new study by A. Köhler and colleagues shows. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-ai-analysis-multiple-sensors-earthquake.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 15:40:04 EDT news702212343 Scientists have uncovered why Antarctica became engulfed by ice millions of years before the Arctic. The international research, published in Science, helps solve one of climate science's longest-standing puzzles: how a vast ice sheet could form when Earth was around 5°C warmer than today. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-scientists-uncover-antarctica-engulfed-ice.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 14:00:10 EDT news702200761 Nearly 660 kilometers (410 miles) beneath Earth's surface lies one of the planet's most important internal boundaries. Known as the 660-km seismic discontinuity, it separates the mantle transition zone from the lower mantle and plays a central role in controlling how heat and materials circulate through Earth's interior. This circulation helps drive mantle convection, plate tectonics, volcanic activity and the long-term evolution of the planet. Although scientists have generally attributed this boundary to the breakdown of the mineral ringwoodite into bridgmanite and ferropericlase, that explanation has struggled to account for the complex structures detected by seismic observations beneath subduction zones and mantle plumes. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-hidden-role-garnet-reveals-earth.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 13:00:07 EDT news702210516 If you have ever hiked in the high peaks of Colorado, the Wasatch Range in Utah or the Tetons in Wyoming, you've almost certainly seen a rock glacier, perhaps without even knowing it. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-glaciers-critical-climate-havens-america.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 12:20:05 EDT news702207782 This image shows the sea surface temperature anomaly detected in the Mediterranean Sea on June 29, 2026, compared with the average for the period 1991–2020, with dark red indicating temperatures that exceed the average by up to 8°C (46.4°F). https://phys.org/news/2026-07-image-mediterranean-sea-june-surface.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 11:30:32 EDT news702210604 Worsened drought stress, changing rainfall patterns, flowers and pollinators thrown out of sync: These only scratch the surface of the ways climate change challenges plant life. But warmer air and higher carbon dioxide levels can also fuel faster plant growth, limit plants' water loss and extend growing seasons—enough so, in some cases, to offset the paving over of green spaces in cities. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-climate-prop-urban-growth-cities.html Earth Sciences Thu, 02 Jul 2026 09:20:05 EDT news702201721 A research group led by Satoshi Ide from the University of Tokyo has demonstrated that classic earthquake generation theory does not hold in areas where the angle at which a tectonic plate dips under another is sufficiently low. The discovery explains why giant earthquakes can form in such areas, providing a theoretical basis to extend observation efforts to previously overlooked features. The findings are published in Science Advances. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-giant-earthquakes-fault-planes-theory.html Earth Sciences Wed, 01 Jul 2026 14:00:08 EDT news702049681 Earthquakes still arrive without warning. That is the hard truth scientists have been forced to accept, despite a decade of advances in artificial intelligence, satellite monitoring and dense seismic networks. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-venezuela-earthquakes-highlight-limits-early.html Earth Sciences Wed, 01 Jul 2026 13:20:03 EDT news702125941 Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is one of the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a class of substances within a broader universe of organofluorine compounds. PFOA has potential adverse effects on human health and environmental safety because of its toxicity and bioaccumulation. Its innate chemical stability, widespread use, and long-range transport result in PFOA's ubiquity in the global environment. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-perfluorooctanoic-acid-seto-inland-sea.html Earth Sciences Wed, 01 Jul 2026 10:40:01 EDT news702117343 In recent years, the frequency of weather-related natural disasters—cyclones, torrential rains, floods—has increased as a consequence of global warming. These disasters cause billions of dollars in damage and losses every year. As a result, there is great interest in weather control, the process by which human intervention can deliberately alter the weather. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-black-optimization-weather-intervention-method.html Earth Sciences Wed, 01 Jul 2026 10:35:39 EDT news702120901 Two diamonds formed 700 kilometers below the Earth's surface reveal a life-giving synchronicity between shifting continents and the cycling of phosphorus, a vital building block of DNA and cell membranes. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-super-deep-diamond-discovery-rewrite.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 16:40:04 EDT news702042162 Isoprene is a volatile organic compound (VOC) that is produced naturally by plants. More than 500 megatonnes of isoprene are emitted each year into Earth's atmosphere, primarily from tropical forests. Soils are recognized sinks for atmospheric isoprene, but their behavior in natural environments remains poorly understood, particularly in the Amazon, where emissions are globally significant. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-extreme-droughts-rainforest-important-feedback.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 16:30:01 EDT news702053582 Researchers at Newcastle University have carried out the first comprehensive modeling of glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) risk in Bhutan and identified previously unrecognized high-risk lakes. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-greater-glacial-bhutan.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 16:20:01 EDT news702044282 The Tibetan Plateau, together with the Hindu Kush–Karakorum–Himalaya region, has more snow and ice than any other region on Earth apart from the polar regions. As a result, this high-altitude region is particularly sensitive to climate change, making it especially important in analyzing its impacts. In recent years, researchers from the DFG Research Training Group TransTiP have been investigating changes in the region's geo-ecosystems. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-industrial-era-pollution-reshape-tibetan.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 14:50:01 EDT news702047761 High-resolution sediment analyses from the Arabian Sea reveal, for the first time, that summer and winter monsoons respond differently to global climate change. The study enhances understanding of past precipitation patterns and could help refine climate models for regions influenced by monsoons. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-arabian-sea-sediments-reveal-summer.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 12:20:08 EDT news702031981 Research by atmospheric scientists at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography and colleagues pinpointed an individual coal-fired power plant in Houston as the main source of particles most likely to encourage the formation of clouds around the metropolitan area. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-houston-power-emerges-dominant-source.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 12:00:06 EDT news702031861 CSIRO hydrologist Dr. Jai Vaze has lost count of how many times over the past four years he has been asked if he can flood-proof the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-blueprint-lismore-meters.html Earth Sciences Tue, 30 Jun 2026 07:20:01 EDT news702016681 Oceanic transform faults are strike-slip boundaries—faults that move horizontally rather than up and down and connect offset mid-ocean ridge segments. They have long been regarded as simple "conservative" plate boundaries that slide past each other without creating or destroying Earth's crust. However, mounting evidence suggests that these faults are influenced by magmatism and hydrothermal circulation, exhibiting complex three-dimensional structures. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-cyclic-drainage-gofar-oceanic-fault.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 17:30:01 EDT news701968021 An international expedition including University of Sydney researchers has pieced together the clearest picture yet of how the Great Barrier Reef responded to dramatic environmental change over the past 30,000 years. Multiple studies since the expedition more than 10 years ago have traced the reef's retreat, regrowth and repeated collapse from the last ice age to the dawn of the modern reef. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-great-barrier-reef-drilling-reveals.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 17:20:08 EDT news701956786 Venezuela has a well-documented vulnerability to earthquakes. The country sits on the boundary between the Caribbean and South American tectonic plates, resulting in routine tremors and causing historical earthquake disasters. But the experience of a "doublet," a pair of 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes 40 seconds apart, on June 24 was a rare misfortune. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-venezuela-earthquakes-tragic-layer-country.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 17:20:01 EDT news701954890 The Antarctic ozone hole was discovered in 1985, when scientists observed a severe depletion in Earth's protective layer of stratospheric ozone. Industrial chemicals known as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), then widely used as refrigerants, propellants, foam-blowing agents and solvents, were at the root of the ozone depletion. After a concerted global effort to phase out the use of CFCs, ozone today is recovering, especially in the Antarctic. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ozone-depletion-began-decades-discovery.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 15:00:11 EDT news701949361 New research led by the University of New England's Dr. Timothy Chapman has uncovered the trigger behind slow earthquakes, providing valuable answers for those living in disaster-prone areas. The research has been published in Geology. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-uncovering-trigger-earthquakes.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 13:00:09 EDT news701953622 In the aftermath of back-to-back earthquakes in northern Venezuela, which by Friday had killed more than 500 people and left thousands injured, experts in resilience planning have emphasized the increasing importance of disaster preparedness in earthquake-prone California. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-deadly-venezuela-earthquakes-tremor-prone.html Earth Sciences Mon, 29 Jun 2026 11:40:04 EDT news701947921 Human-driven climate change significantly intensified the retreat of one of the most important glaciers in Antarctica during the 20th century. The Pine Island Glacier, which drains a large part of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet into the Amundsen Sea, is one of the biggest contributors to global sea level rise. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-human-driven-retreat-antarctica-fastest.html Earth Sciences Sun, 28 Jun 2026 19:00:01 EDT news701682108