Aberfan is located in the South Wales Valleys and developed as a coal mining village during the industrial revolution in the mid-1800s. The village is much like any of the other villages scattered across the region – rows on rows of small terrace houses, nestled into the sides and bottom of steep, glacially eroded valleys. …[Read More]
Latest posts
Explosive Inside, Effusive Outside: What is it that makes volcanoes erupt the way that they do, and how does that relate to how all ECRs feel inside?
Let’s get the joke out of the way first, because I made it to myself more than once while finishing this piece: “explosive inside, effusive outside” is a fairly accurate description of the average Early Career Researcher trying to hold it together inside the current state of academia. Calm, composed, professionally cheerful on the surface; …[Read More]
The World is Your Oyster (Bed)
Introduction – a little Shellfish Our story starts in Springbank, where the discovery of an anomalous oyster bed, slap bang in the middle of more than a kilometre of Cretaceous terrestrial deposits, led me (as so often happens) on a fascinating voyage of discovery exploring the origins of fossil oyster beds, focusing on Alberta. This …[Read More]
Pathways of force within granular layers
Earth’s surface is covered by many kinds of granular materials, including sediments and soils. Below ground, grains are also widespread in unconsolidated deposits and fault zones; even polycrystalline rocks deep inside the Earth are made up of mineral grains. These materials deform under their own weight and external forces, but what forces act inside them? …[Read More]
In Defence of Uncertainty: Why we can’t avoid it and why we need it
Welcome to the second post in our GeoLog series on communicating uncertainty! Written by students from an interdisciplinary course at the University of Tübingen led by Dr. Solmaz Mohadjer, this series highlights how reframing the unknown as a strength can transform science communication. In this piece, Ana Isidora Ciobanu and Sarah Lind show why uncertainty …[Read More]
An Interview on the importance of simplification – modeling the weathering crust and microbial activity on ice sheets
The weathering crust of ice sheets or glaciers is a layer of porous ice, bordering on impermeable ice below and influencing the meltwater storage and production. This physically complex environment harbors a wide range of microorganisms that themselves affect the weathering crust and contribute to darkening of ice surfaces. The two factors – microbial community …[Read More]
Why Did a Magnitude 6.8 Earthquake Left Malaysia Unscathed?
On 23rd February 2026, Malaysia faced one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded in its history. A magnitude 6.8 event struck offshore Sabah, the most seismically active state in Malaysia. The event was reported as magnitude 6.8 by MetMalaysia, while the USGS recorded it as magnitude 7.1, with the difference reflecting variations in magnitude estimates …[Read More]
Highlights from EGUsphere
Drawing inspiration from new research shared by EGU scientists, this column brings you some of the latest publications. This edition covers the globe, from the air we breathe in Ireland and China to the waves that stitch the tropics to the Southern Hemisphere. Surface ozone in Ireland: where does it really come from? Ozone plays …[Read More]
Post-Last Glacial Maximum intensification of marine faulting: resolution-dependent hazard assessment
Subsea pipelines and cables are vital to modern energy and communications, yet assessing the active geological faults they cross underwater is notoriously difficult. By examining marine fault slip rates at higher stratigraphic resolution than previously analyzed in this region, our new research shows that displacement rates accelerated tenfold after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). This …[Read More]
Book Review: The Brilliant Abyss by Helen Scales
Looking for your next read? 📚 Our previous book recommendations took us through ocean physics in Blue Machine – How the Ocean Shapes Our World, bioluminescence and deep-sea exploration in Below the Edge of Darkness, and ocean-inspired science fiction in The Swarm. Most recently, we ventured beyond the ocean with Invisible Women, exploring data bias …[Read More]