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Earth Sciences news
Six unusual structures identified at Earth's core-mantle boundary with the help of deep learning
Since scientists can't drill 2,900 km (1,800 miles) to the boundary between Earth's core and deep mantle, they must use information relayed by seismic waves recorded during earthquakes to study this region. In a new study ...
Lakes aren't just storing water—they're changing the carbon cycle
Lakes may look like picturesque stopping points along a river or stream, but they can have a big influence on what happens to carbon as it moves through a landscape. New research suggests that the more lake-rich a network ...
Ocean indicators NOAA scientists are tracking for El Niño's arrival on the West Coast
Has El Niño reached the West Coast? You might think it has. After all, the ocean off Southern and Central California is unusually warm. But that warmth is from a recent marine heat wave that predates the current El Niño. ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 5, 2026
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New method predicts where massive earthquakes will strike
UC Riverside scientists have developed a way to identify where Earth's biggest earthquakes are most likely to occur, offering a powerful new tool for improving disaster preparation in some of the most dangerous seismic regions.
Earth Sciences
Sep 5, 2026
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Researchers tune into Arctic under-ice sounds and test through-ice communication
Beneath the Arctic Ocean is an orchestra featuring natural and human composers, from cracking sea ice and whistling beluga whales to humming shipping-vessel engines. Researchers from MIT Lincoln Laboratory heard some of this ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 4, 2026
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Physics-informed AI improves predictions of how critical minerals move through rock
The key to finding more critical minerals may lie in understanding how fluids and chemicals move through rock. As these fluids travel underground, they can dissolve, transport and concentrate valuable minerals in specific ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 4, 2026
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Venice Lagoon provides living laboratory for researchers studying climate change
Venice really is sinking. Sort of. The home of gondolas, bridges and canals is built across a collection of islands, and the sediments beneath them are gradually compacting, causing the ground to subside. But while the land ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 4, 2026
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Orange hydrogen: Could Western Australia's rocks help power a low-carbon future?
Deep beneath parts of Western Australia, injecting CO2-rich water into iron-rich rocks may offer an unexpected opportunity for both clean energy production and carbon storage.
Earth Sciences
Sep 4, 2026
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Iron helped scientists trace Earth's oxygen. Now it's telling a bigger story
For decades, scientists have studied iron preserved in ancient rocks to reconstruct how Earth's oceans and atmosphere became rich in oxygen. A new study suggests iron has recorded other major transformations too.
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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The Arctic melt season is a week longer now than it was in the 1980s, new research on sea ice trends shows
Relatively few people have been to the Arctic, and even fewer have set foot in Antarctica. Most people rely on imagination and the media to visualize these landscapes and the ways they are changing.
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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Antarctic expedition reveals why Southern Ocean clouds remain one of climate science's greatest challenges
The Southern Ocean plays a pivotal role in regulating Earth's climate, yet the clouds that blanket this remote region remain among the least understood features in atmospheric science. By controlling both incoming sunlight ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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Permafrost melt could cost $261 billion in infrastructure damages, study suggests
A new study provides insight into the economic impact of melting permafrost on Arctic communities. Permafrost is ground that permanently remains below freezing for at least two consecutive years. Permafrost covers about 24% ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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Deep-sea methane filter develops faster than previously thought
A biological methane filter on the seafloor can form much faster than scientists previously believed. An international research team including a University of Bremen researcher observed this over six years at a newly formed ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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How underwater 'booms' could provide earlier warning of deadly volcanic tsunamis
The massive January 2022 eruption of Hunga volcano in the Kingdom of Tonga took the world by surprise.
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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When panic freezes people: Virtual quake tests capture real-time fear and injury risk
Growing up, many of us were taught to drop, cover and hold on during an earthquake. The guidance is straightforward, but how people actually respond when the ground starts shaking can be far more complicated. Now, UC Berkeley ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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Salt may have helped turn Earth into a frozen world 700 million years ago
Earth may have been pushed deeper into a global deep freeze by something surprisingly ordinary: salt. Around 700 million years ago, Earth entered periods of extreme glaciation known as Snowball Earth, when ice is thought ...
Heavy water's atmospheric fingerprints boost weather forecasts for up to five days
Weather forecasts rely on many different kinds of data, including temperature, humidity and wind. For the first time, researchers, including those at the University of Tokyo, have demonstrated that a long-theorized improvement ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 3, 2026
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Rare train of Pacific cyclones fueled by historic El Niño
Two powerful hurricanes and a strengthening tropical storm on Wednesday were churning through the Pacific Ocean, where waters were being warmed by a historically strong El Niño climate episode.
Earth Sciences
Sep 2, 2026
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The future of Alaskan wildfire detailed in new climate model study
Climate change is altering patterns of wildfire activity in Alaska, making fires larger and more common in some areas with historically low fire activity. Wildfires can be difficult to predict because they are affected by ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 2, 2026
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Blind spots at Antarctic coasts limit sea level projections
The Antarctic coastal zone is not simply the edge of the continent. It is a tightly coupled system where ice from the ice sheet extends over the seabed, initially resting on it and farther out floating as ice shelves. Here, ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 2, 2026
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Other news
How bird movements are helping researchers track a global virus
A new type of LED light could bring significant efficiency gains
Periodical cicadas may be doomed to extinction
Tsunami of dirt: What caused Nepal's deadly glacial flood?
Utah mountain ranges may store a billion tons of hidden ice
Basalt weathering may remove far less CO₂ than projected
How Mercury formed its graphite crust and core
Virus-like particles enable gene activity tracking over time in the same cells
In ant nervous systems, gene expression may drive rescue behavior
