Earth Sciences

Call for Proposals - deadline 10 November 2019

A magma ocean existing during the core formation is thought to have been highly depleted in carbon due to its high-siderophile (iron loving) behavior. Thus, most of the carbon forming the atmosphere and life on Earth may have been delivered by a carbon-rich embryo after the core formation. However, a new high-pressure experiment has shown that previous studies may have overestimated the amount of carbon partitioning to the core.

Researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School, in collaboration with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research’s Bioinformatics Institute, and the University of Texas Medical Branch, USA, have discovered that the dengue virus changes its shape through mutations in Envelope protein to evade vaccines and therapeutics. The study also gives insights on the types of treatment strategies to use at different stages of infection. This could give rise to new approaches in vaccine development and treatment for dengue disease.

A new study has estimated for the first time how the eruption of Mount Tambora changed the probability of the cold and wet European ‘year without a summer’ of 1816.

The dinosaur, whose nearly complete skeleton was unearthed from 72 million year old marine deposits in Mukawa Town in northern Japan, belongs to a new genus and species of a herbivorous hadrosaurid dinosaur, according to the study published in Scientific Reports. The scientists named the dinosaur Kamuysaurus japonicus.

The fossil, found in Japan, furthers our understanding of hadrosaur diversity in the Far East and hadrosaurid evolution during the Late Cretaceous period (100.5–66 million years ago). The research is reported in Scientific Reports this week

Do you have new research to share about anthropology, archeology, paleontology, sociology, climate change or endangered species? You could win the opportunity to highlight your research in Asia Research News 2020.

Variations in the depth of snow cover in the Arctic region from late winter to spring determines the summer temperature pattern in Eurasia, according to Hokkaido University researchers. In particular, deeper-than-usual snow cover in Western Russia enhanced the likelihood of summer heat waves in Europe and Northeast Asia in recent years.

A recent study, affiliated with South Korea's Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) has challenged themselves with developing tandem solar cells for the first time, thus received much attention for achieving 21.19% efficiency.

A recent study, affiliated with South Korea's Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS), has succeeded in fabricating highly alligned SnSe thin films through a low-cost and scalable solution process.

Environmental DNA (eDNA) has successfully proven the presence of invasive crayfish in almost all the small streams around Lake Akan in Japan, suggesting that eDNA analysis is an efficient and highly sensitive method to assess the distribution of aquatic organisms.

Phase H is a hydrous mineral that is considered to be an important carrier of water into deep Earth. We determined the dissociation condition of phase H by a theoretical calculation based on quantum mechanics. Phase H decomposes at approximately 60 GPa at 1000 K. This indicates that the transportation of water by phase H may be terminated at a depth of approximately 1,500 km in the middle of the lower mantle.

The rise in temperature and precipitation levels in summer in northern Japan, has negatively affected the growth of conifers and resulted in their gradual decline, according to a 38-year-long study in which mixed forests of conifers and broad-leaved trees were monitored by a team of researchers from Hokkaido University.

Early snowmelt increases the risk of phenological mismatch, in which the flowering of periodic plants and pollinators fall out of sync, compromising seed production.

Researchers in Japan have identified the potential genes responsible for coral bleaching caused by temperature elevation.

It is believed that terrestrial planets were made from chondrites. However, geochemical observations have shown that the abundance pattern of volatile elements is inconsistent with chondrites. New high-pressure experiments suggest that F and Cl fractionation during magma ocean crystallization could explain the non-chondritic Earth's F/Cl ratio.

Using a taxonomic approach, scientists have re-identified the huge birds drawn on the desert plains of Peru as hermits or pelicans.

The Subaru Telescope has captured images of more than 1800 exploding stars in the Universe, some located 8 billion light years from Earth.

Scientists have employed a new method utilizing tsunami signals to calculate the calving magnitude of an ocean-terminating glacier in northwestern Greenland, uncovering correlations between calving flux and environmental factors such as air temperature, ice speed, and ocean tides.

- Current global response insufficient; 'Transformative changes' needed to restore and protect nature; Opposition from vested interests can be overcome for public good - Most comprehensive assessment of its kind; 1,000,000 species threatened with extinction

Researchers in South Korea and Singapore have, for the first time, developed a chemical probe that enables live-imaging of a type of immune cells in the brain, known as microglia, in a live animal brain.

Cycad plant roots release signals into the soil that triggers the transformation of bacteria into its motile form, helping them move to the plant roots and establish a symbiotic partnership.

The composition of mixed brominated/chlorinated dibenzofurans (PXDFs) and diphenyl ethers in soils from an e-waste site in Ghana suggests a formation of PXDFs through condensation of the flame retardant PBDEs and subsequent bromine-to-chlorine exchange. PXDFs were substantial contributors of toxic equivalents among dioxins from e-waste burning.

Evidence of historic marine life present in Alaskan permafrost is helping scientists reconstruct ancient changes in the ice cover over the Arctic Ocean.

Geoengineering experiments underway to protect Australia’s Great Barrier Reef from climate change highlight the need for Australian law to catch up, researchers say.

Glaciers extending into freshwater lakes can form long, submerged terraces that menacingly rise above the surface when icy chunks fall into the water.

Ocean colour could serve as a reliable proxy for salinity, opening the door for more frequent and detailed measurements.

Search Team Produces First-ever Live Photos and Video of Indonesia’s Extraordinary Lost Bee Species.

Laboratory experiments at extreme pressures and temperatures lead to precise measurements of the sound velocity of CaSiO3 perovskite which is one of the important constituent minerals in the Earth's mantle. The measurements suggested the accumulation of the subducted oceanic crust beneath the 660 km discontinuity.

An international team of researchers has unveiled that local greenhouse gas concentrations appear to be attributable to Arctic Amplification.