Seismologists are not surprised to see that the coronavirus lockdowns reduce seismic ambient noise; but what is emerging from the data is that the reduction is quite spectacular. This shows that human activities – road and railroad traffic, industrial machinery – account for a significant chunk of background Earth’s vibration: and that is a form of pollution that deserves more at ...[Read More]
This week on the EGU GD Blog, we interview the newly elected incoming Geodynamics Division President, Jeroen van Hunen (Durham University). Jeroen takes on the role for 2021-2023, from Paul Tackley (ETH Zürich). Jeroen is a Professor within the Department of Geosciences, including the Geodynamics, Geophysics, and The Solid Earth research groups. He is originally from the Netherlands, having studie ...[Read More]
We all know it: the heart of many Master level courses is the term paper, a scientific essay drawn from the students’ work during the semester. It is a way of teaching students not only the content, but also the methodology of scientific work. And to keep them occupied during the semester break, of course. But last semester one of our courses took a slightly different approach. After writing a pr ...[Read More]
This natural arch named Pirulico’s tower is located in Mojácar, situated in the south east of the Province of Almería (Andalucia) in southern Spain. A natural arch, natural bridge or, less commonly, a rock arch is a natural rock formation where a rock arch forms, with an opening underneath. Most natural arches form as a narrow bridge, walled by cliffs, become narrower from erosion, wi ...[Read More]
#MINERALMONDAY: your weekly dose of minerals every* Monday (* excluding the last few months of Mondays…). A lot of bad things have happened since the start of the year, but perhaps the least important of these is the complete lack of minerals every Monday. Don’t worry, we are back, and what better way to start than with baksanite, Bi6Te2S3. Why baksanite? Well, for the sake of sounding ...[Read More]
Folds are among the most strikingly beautiful structures we can observe in rocks. There are several ways folds may form in rocks. For instance, folds in sedimentary rocks may develop by liquefaction of soft sediments, but the most common way to produce folds – and also my favorite – is by deformation. When rocks are compressed by tectonic forces, layers (or foliations) bend and warp, p ...[Read More]
Many scientific societies and similar organisations make awards on an annual or regular basis. It is one way of recognising a distinguished career, contribution to the community, etc., or providing a boost to the development of an Early Career Scientist. In the case of EGU, all awardees are expected to give a presentation of their work; it is a way of generating a stimulating programme at the Annu ...[Read More]
Through the eyes of a researcher studying mountain processes in the European Alps in the context of a global warming climate, let’s discover how geophysical methods help to better understand frozen ground! Permafrost defines a thermal state, i.e. permafrost is soil, sediment, or rock that remains at or below 0°C during at least two consecutive years. As permafrost is only defined by its temperatur ...[Read More]
The last few weeks have been filled with devastating news – harrowing stories about the police killing black people. Racial inequalities and discrimination go far beyond current events. In science in general, and in the geosciences in particular, little progress has been made regarding diversity over the past few decades. This is both the result of deep-seated institutional racism (sometimes refe ...[Read More]
Marine plastic is just one of the many challenges facing the future of our oceans. For many years researchers have been attempting to understand this problem, but it can be surprising to learn how many things are still unknown, even in oceans we may think of as being familiar. The Mediterranean Sea is one such place, where this photograph was taken by David Jones just off the coast of Malta. ...[Read More]
