Phys.org: Earth science

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.

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.

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 (14.4°F).

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.