geodynamics

The Sassy Scientist – Pluto Panic

The Sassy Scientist September 13, 2019

Every week, The Sassy Scientist answers a question on geodynamics, related topics, academic life, the universe or anything in between with a healthy dose of sarcasm. Do you have a question for The Sassy Scientist? Submit your question here or leave a comment below. After a distraught period (of more than a decade!) since the news first came out that Pluto was not considered a true planet anymore, ...[Read More]

EGU GA 2020 call-for-sessions deadline

Iris van Zelst September 4, 2019

Now is the time!
Credit:Pixabay

The deadline for session (and short course!) proposals for EGU 2020 is tomorrow on September 5, 2019! So, if you have a great idea for a session or a short course you still have a little bit of time to write a smashing proposal, find a nice co-convener and submit it to ensure that you will be able to access the convener’s party next year without a fuss. Why not share your knowledge on correct code ...[Read More]

What controlled the evolution of Plate Tectonics on Earth?

Editorial team 1 August 14, 2019

Great Unconformity - Immensity River, Grand Canyon

The Great Unconformity–boundary between Lower Paleozoic and Proterozoic rocks indicating the global surface erosion event following Snowball Glaciations that might have kick-started the contemporary phase of active plate tectonics. Photo of the Grand Canyon, Immensity River, Colorado (public domain).

Plate tectonics is a key geological process on Earth, shaping its surface, and making it unique among the planets in the Solar System. Yet, how plate tectonics emerged and which factors controlled its evolution remain controversial. The recently published paper in Nature by Sobolev and Brown suggests new ideas to solve this problem…. What makes plate tectonics possible on contemporary Earth? It is ...[Read More]

Remarkable Regions – The Réunion Hotspot

Editorial team 1 August 7, 2019

Image Credit: modified by Anne Glerum after NASA Earth Observatory/Joshua Stevens.

This week we again turn our attention to a Remarkable Region that deserves a spot in the scientific limelight. Postdoctoral researcher Eva Bredow of Kiel University shares with us her long history with Réunion Island. At first glance, Réunion is a relatively small tropical island, located between Madagascar and Mauritius, and from my personal experience, most Germans have never even heard of it. T ...[Read More]