Earth Sciences

A new study has lifted the lid on five species of root-lesion nematodes living in maize crops across New Zealand - and suggested the existence of a hitherto-unsuspected cryptic species.

Groundwater and multilevel cooperation in recovery efforts mitigated water crisis after flooding

A research team led by National Taiwan University used geochemical indicators from deep-sea sediments to reconstruct the upper ocean zonal gradients in the tropical Pacific during the last glacial period, providing valuable constraints for future climate projections.

Accidental clogging in geothermal wells reveals need for monitoring to ensure long-term usability

This annual event will bring together innovators, researchers, and industry leaders from around the world to spotlight groundbreaking advancements in sustainable energy and green technology.

Tsunamis can cause immense physical damage to ports, but the economic cost does not stop there. The resultant disruptions of shipping lanes result in billions of dollars in losses every day, as was seen in the 2011 tsunami that hit the Tohoku Region. To better assess the ripple effect a tsunami could cause to shipping lanes in the South China Sea, a group of international researchers carried out 104 tsunami simulations.

The distribution of traditional wild food sources in the Republic of Sakha could change significantly, affecting the diets and incomes of Indigenous rural communities who depend on them.

A boon to solar power, agriculture, and other industries, ADMU and MO scientists have found a way to improve sunny weather forecasts by as much as 94%.

Venice of the Pacific, Membrane transformers, Diverse meals, Nano dots and spirals & Extinct swimmers. Read all in the latest Editor's Choice.

Balancing environmental conditions with energy-saving performance

In a pivotal move ahead of COP29, Applied Microbiology International (AMI) has partnered with leading global scientific organisations to issue a unified call to action, spotlighting microbial solutions as pivotal in combating climate change. In a strategic publication, released in multiple high-impact scientific journals at once, the joint paper advocates for the establishment of a global science-driven climate task force. This initiative aims to expedite the deployment of microbiome technologies, providing stakeholders worldwide with access to effective and immediate solutions

Research suggests that urban areas could reduce their carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by optimizing their urban form. However, the relationship between urban form and emissions is highly context-dependent and generalizations cannot be made.

The international team, led by Distinguished Chair Professor Chuan-Chou Shen of the Department, of Geosciences, National Taiwan University, uncovered Nan Madol's history by analyzing the ages of the site's coral rubbles. The research found that subsidence-related sea level rise and climate change posed serious threated to the construction and maintenance of Nan Madol, ultimately leading to the collapse of the chiefdom and abandonment of the site.

Data could help rethink climate change models regarding sources of carbon and CO2 sinks

GDC 2024 will explore how social, economic, and political factors influence the effectiveness of climate resilience strategies.

Crystallographic preferred orientation of phase D at high pressure and temperature

City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) researchers have made a remarkable scientific breakthrough in developing next-generation passive radiative cooling technology. Their pioneering work on cooling ceramics, pavements and textiles helps mitigate heat impacts without additional energy consumption. This innovation has promising application potential in buildings, roads and clothing, addressing issues such as urban heat islands and greenhouse gas emissions to combat the challenges of climate change.

The equatorial Pacific plays a crucial role in regulating tropical cloud formation and regional weather extremes, earning it the nickname “the pacemaker of global warming.” Though its impact may seem subtle, this oceanic region has been a silent hero, slowing the pace of global warming. Now, climate scientists are on a quest to discover whether this protective mechanism will continue to pulsate in our favor.

An unprecedented rapid increase in anthropogenic fingerprints around 1952 in the global strata reflects the point in time when humanity began to overwhelm the Earth system

Study shows that ancient reef-building stromatoporoids survived the Late Devonian extinction and continued to thrive during the Carboniferous Period

Analyzing fossils can be difficult – especially when they're so small that they can only be seen with a microscope. Researchers at Tohoku University have come up with a solution.

Dr. Chung-Che Wu, a Ph.D. graduate from the Department of Geosciences, National Taiwan University (NTU), along with Prof. Chuan-Chou Shen, the National Chair Professor, collaborating with an international research team from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH), Switzerland, published a cutting-edge laser-ablation uranium-thorium dating (LA U-Th dating) technology in the prestigious journal "Analytical Chemistry" on August 6th (1) and was selected as one of the cover articles (Figure 1). This breakthrough technology improved LA U-Th dating limits to within tens of thousands of years, with the youngest geological samples dated to only a thousand years, making it the most advanced analytical technique internationally.

Over millions of years, Earth has experienced cycles of ice ages and warm periods. Today, we find ourselves in a warm period heavily influenced by human activities. As greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere rise, global warming intensifies, causing ice sheets to melt rapidly, sea levels to rise, and posing severe threats to global ecosystems and human societies. Understanding the mechanisms behind these warming periods by studying past extreme warm periods is a crucial task for modern scientists.

Velocities of aluminum enriched superhydrous phase B suggest the presence of hydrated mantle regions beneath subduction zones

Commercially important marine fish and invertebrate species will likely shift northwards under a warmer climate.

Applied Microbiology International has announced that it has recruited 11 new Global Ambassadors from around the world.

Mechanics and thermodynamics of (Mg,Fe)O grain boundaries under extreme pressure

In this study, the crystal structure of serpentine (antigorite) was investigated using first-principles calculations under pressure. The results showed that the structure and chemical composition of antigorite changed gradually under high pressure, and it is highly likely that water was released by these structural changes during the subduction process. It was shown that the changes in the modulated structure (polysome) reported in this study may explain the distribution of intermediate-depth earthquakes reported by observations.

Sound velocities in lunar mantle aggregates at simultaneous high pressures and temperatures suggests the presence of garnet in the deep lunar interior

We performed in situ X-ray observations of the unit-cell volume of SiO2 stishovite in a water-saturated system using a multi-anvil apparatus. The results revealed that the unit-cell volume expanded excessively at temperatures lower than 600°C, but it decreased with increasing temperature and time. Therefore, water dissolution into SiO2 stishovite is likely a metastable phenomenon and stishovite is unlikely to be a major water carrier, at least up to uppermost lower mantle conditions.