Cretaceous Volcanic Ash Linked with Shale Gas and Oil Fields
Nutrient-rich ash from an enormous flare-up of volcanic eruptions toward the end of the dinosaurs’ reign kicked off a chain of events that led to…
Geology
Geologists Reveal How Magma from Earth’s Mantle Provide Natural Treasures
South Africa’s history and economy has been built on its rich natural treasures of a number of precious metals, stones and minerals. The country’s mineral…
Lab Experiments Provide New Details Into How Magma Feeds Volcanic Eruptions
A novel research study by scientists at the University of Liverpool has provided new insights into how molten rock (magma) moves through the Earth’s crust…
Scientists Identify a Mineral Signature for Finding Burgess Shale-Type Fossils
Scientists have identified a mineral signature for sites that are more likely to contain rare fossils that preserve evidence of soft tissue — essential information…
New Approach to Studying Biomarkers Helped Solve 500-Million-Year-Old Mystery
A postgraduate student of the Faculty of Geology of MSU, working with an international scientific group, participated in chemical analysis of biomarkers — compounds that…
Tiny Jurassic Dinosaur Featured Rainbow Ruff and a Bony Crest
Ancient dinosaurs were adorned in some amazing ways, from the horns of the triceratops to the plates and spikes of the stegosaurus. A newly discovered,…
Researchers Date the Origins of Photosynthesis to 1.25 Billion Years Ago
The world’s oldest algae fossils are a billion years old, according to a new analysis by earth scientists at McGill University. Based on this finding,…
Yale Researchers ‘Look’ Deep Inside a Diamond Planet
New research by Yale University scientists suggests rocky planets orbiting other stars may hide thick layers of diamond beneath the surface. “A carbon-rich planet likely…
First-of-Its Kind Seismic Study Challenges Concepts of Geology
Slowly but steadily, an enormous mass of warm rock is rising beneath part of New England, although a major volcanic eruption isn’t likely for millions…
Oxygen-Rich Iron Reservoirs Could Have Played a Crucial Role in the Creation of Life
A new study from the Carnegie Institution For Science shows that reservoirs of oxygen-rich iron between the Earth’s core and mantle could have played a…
SMU Study Shows Carbon Dioxide Link to Global Warming 22 Million Years Ago
New research from Southern Methodist University reveals a link between high carbon dioxide and climate change 22 million years ago. Fossil leaves from Africa have…
Mongolian Microfossils Shed Light on the Rise of Animals
A newly published study from Yale University details how a cache of embryo-like microfossils discovered in northern Mongolia may shed light on questions about the…
Extreme Methane Rainstorms Shape Saturn’s Moon Titan
Newly published research from UCLA shows that extreme methane rainstorms appear to have a key role in shaping Titan’s icy surface. Titan, the largest of…
Tectonic Plates Used to Sink Much Further Than They do Today
New research from MIT reveals that ancient Earth harbored higher mantle temperatures, which were much more efficient at drawing down pieces of the planet’s crust….
Moon’s Magnetic Field May Have Lasted 2 Billion Years
New findings from MIT suggest two mechanisms may have powered the moon’s ancient churning, extending the lunar dynamo’s lifetime by at least 1 billion years….
Researchers Identify a Prehistoric Sea Creature That Once Patrolled the Ocean Floor
A team of biologists has identified a small marine predator that once patrolled the ocean floor and grabbed its prey with 50 spines that it…
Initial Pulse of Siberian Traps Sills Triggered End-Permian Extinction
New research from MIT reveals that about 251.9 million years ago, in a region that today is known as the Siberian Traps, a huge pulse…
Arctic Sea Ice Loss is Impacting Atlantic Ocean Water Circulation System
New research from Yale University and the University of Southampton shows that the loss of Arctic sea ice is impacting the Atlantic Ocean water circulation…