Phys.org: Earth science

Using machine learning, researchers at Penn State have tied low-magnitude microearthquakes to the permeability of subsurface rocks beneath the Earth, a discovery that could have implications for improving geothermal energy transfer.

Glacial lakes form when meltwater is trapped behind a dam, usually glacial ice, bedrock or a type of moraine (terminal types being an unconsolidated pile of debris at the maximum extent of the glacier). When a dam fails, the resulting sudden release of a large volume of water is known as an outburst flood, having catastrophic consequences on the environment and communities downstream. Such events are seemingly becoming more common as glaciers retreat and meltwater accumulates in larger and more numerous glacial lakes, due to climate change.

Cloud "engineering" could be more effective for climate cooling than previously thought, because of the increased cloud cover produced, new research shows.

A new study published in Nature Communications has revealed that the interplay between meandering ocean currents and the ocean floor induces upwelling velocity, transporting warm water to shallower depths. This mechanism contributes substantially to the melting of ice shelves in the Amundsen Sea of West Antarctica. These ice shelves are destabilizing rapidly and contributing to sea level rise.

The Tibetan Plateau is a prevalent region for deep convection owing to its unique thermodynamic forcing. Deep convection can exist as isolated deep convection (IDC), which is small in size, or mesoscale convective systems (MCSs), which are convective storms organized into larger and longer-lived systems. Most previous research has focused on MCSs over the Tibetan Plateau, but less so on IDC systems (hereafter, IDCs).

The Himalayas stand as Earth's highest mountain range, possibly the highest ever. How did it form? Why is it so tall?

In 1897, the former whaling ship RV Belgica left Antwerp in Belgium and set sail due south. It was the first voyage of what would become known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration. It did not go to plan.

Mud can be surprisingly clear. A global team of scientists has uncovered a hidden truth: Human actions are shaping the journey of mud. Over the course of decades, our activities have wielded significant influence over the movement and dispersion of mud, affecting carbon storage and cycling worldwide.

A trio of seismologists affiliated with Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, the Berkeley Seismological Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley reports that a part of the San Andreas Fault, at Parkfield, is not producing signals that would suggest an earthquake is going to happen any time soon, but they assert there are factors that suggest otherwise.

Worldwide over the past 35 years, dams and land reclamation activities have converted 250,000 acres of estuary—an area roughly 17 times the size of Manhattan—to urban land or agricultural fields, with most land conversion and estuary loss in rapidly developing countries, a new study finds. The findings could help developing countries avoid problems faced by countries that have already lost or degraded their estuaries.

The subtropical westerly jet is a high-altitude, fast-moving air current that flows from west to east in the subtropical region of the Earth's atmosphere. It's an important part of atmospheric circulation, influencing weather patterns and climate conditions globally. Scientists have noticed that this jet has been shifting northward under global warming.

A team of researchers has developed an approach that maps the soil salt content around the world with an exceptional detail of 10 meters. This advance tackles the pressing need for accurate assessments of soil salinity, a formidable challenge that jeopardizes agricultural productivity and soil vitality on a global scale.

A University of California, Irvine-led team reveals a clear link between human-driven climate change and the years-long drought currently gripping southern Madagascar. Their study appears in npj Climate and Atmospheric Science.

An analysis of glacial data spanning four decades has provided valuable insights into the changes taking place in the glaciers of the Pir Panjal range within the Kashmir basin in India. The research, published in the International Journal of Hydrology Science and Technology, analyzed data for the period 1980 to 2020.

As snow falls on Antarctica, layers build up and turn to ice. Over time, this compressed snow has become a continent-sized glacier, or ice sheet. It's enormous—almost double the size of Australia and far larger than the continental United States.

A journal article published by University of Houston Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences researchers highlights a significant, yet often overlooked, environmental concern—permanent losses in land surface elevation due to inelastic compaction of expansive soils during prolonged droughts. The findings appear in Geophysical Research Letters.

Common "hard" coastal defenses, like concrete sea walls, might struggle to keep up with increasing climate risks. A new study published in Nature Communications shows that combining them with nature-based solutions could, in some contexts, create defenses that are better able to adapt.

Recently, researchers have made breakthroughs in flash flood forecasting by studying how different rainfall patterns affect flash floods in China's mountainous regions. This research leads to the possibility of more accurate and localized flood warnings, potentially enhancing disaster preparedness and reducing the devastating effects of flash floods on at-risk communities.

A new study introduces the Hybrid Global Annual 1-km International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) Land Cover Maps for the period 2000–2020.

The 4.8 magnitude earthquake that shook the Northeast on April 5 didn't seem to cause much damage, but it was enough to send tremors of concern through anyone who felt it. It's not that the region never experiences seismic shifts. It's just that most earthquakes in the region go undetected.