EGU Blogs

Divisions

CR
Cryospheric Sciences

Climate Change & Cryosphere – How the Chalaati Glacier (Georgian Caucasus) changed since the Little Ice Age

September 4, 2020
Climate Change & Cryosphere – How the Chalaati Glacier (Georgian Caucasus) changed since the Little Ice Age

Chalaati Glacier is one of the largest glaciers in the Greater Caucasus and has undergone expansive mass loss. In this week’s blog post, Levan Tielidze tells us about Chalaati Glacier variations in the past centuries. His recent study was conducted based on surface exposure dating technique, dendrochronology (tree ring analysis), lichenometry, and satellite imagery. They found out that the Chalaat ...[Read More]

GD
Geodynamics

The Sassy Scientist – The Cricetinae Model

September 4, 2020
The Sassy Scientist – The Cricetinae Model

Despite workshops and seminars and conference sessions and Zoom colloquia, of which Geraldine has attended many, one big question remains in geophysics: What drives plate tectonics? Dear Geraldine, Slab pull? Ridge push? Mantle drag? Continental keels? Super plumes? Mantle wind? Expanding Earth? God? Nope, there is only one explanation that truly fits the data and passes the common sense test: The ...[Read More]

GD
Geodynamics

What happens when two worlds collide?

September 2, 2020
What happens when two worlds collide?

Why does the Moon have a very small core and Mercury one that makes up roughly 85% of the planet’s radius? Why are humans doing research in geoscience and not some evolved version of dinosaurs? In this week’s blog post, Harry Ballantyne, PhD student at the Department of Space and Planetary Sciences at the University of Bern, is talking about large-scale collisions and how they can answ ...[Read More]

TS
Tectonics and Structural Geology

TS Must-Read – Dietz (1961) Continent and ocean basin evolution by spreading of the sea floor

September 2, 2020
TS Must-Read – Dietz (1961) Continent and ocean basin evolution by spreading of the sea floor

Dietz 1961 “Continent and Ocean Basin Evolution by Spreading of the Sea Floor” paper was ground-breaking for plate tectonics. Almost literally, as it discussed the sea-floor spreading theory. Certainly away from the consensus at the time, this article is a classic in divergent tectonic settings and it may be an interesting piece of work for ECS working in tectonics and, more particularly, in conti ...[Read More]

OS
Ocean Sciences

Eurec4a: Tales from the Tropics

September 1, 2020
Eurec4a: Tales from the Tropics

As many seagoing oceanographers find themselves on land for the foreseeable future, we’ve decided to share a tale of a research cruise to fill that ship-shaped void. Back in January 2020, four research vessels ventured out into the Tropical North Atlantic as part of the Eurec4a and ATOMIC campaigns. Eurec4a’s aim: to investigate the couplings between clouds, circulation and convection ...[Read More]

SM
Seismology

From light to waveform: how fiber-optic cables can be repurposed as seismic arrays

September 1, 2020
From light to waveform: how fiber-optic cables can be repurposed as seismic arrays

What is Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) and why is it exciting? Any observational seismologist would agree that our understanding of subsurface structure and dynamics is in great part limited by our ability to acquire data at the right locations, with the necessary spatial and temporal resolution. However, although our ultimate objective would be to cover the Earth with high-quality, broadband ...[Read More]

Geochemistry, Mineralogy, Petrology & Volcanology

‘Job’ alert! GMPV is looking for a (deputy) early career scientist rep!

August 31, 2020
‘Job’ alert! GMPV is looking for a (deputy) early career scientist rep!

The Geochemistry, Mineralogy, Petrology and Volcanology division of the European Geosciences Union is looking for a new Early Career Scientist representative! The current rep will stand down at the General Assembly in 2021, but we’d like some handover time between reps so we’re advertising now with the aim of the incoming rep starting in ~November 2020. They’ll officially be the ...[Read More]

NH
Natural Hazards

Pros & cons of an academic life

August 31, 2020
Pros & cons of an academic life

The life of an academic is supposed to be fulfilling. To study a specific topic, understand it and share the acquired knowledge with everyone is something of great societal value and should make anyone proud. But, everything in life comes with pros and cons. So, today we will try to talk about the beauty and the problems that come with being an academic. My name is Luigi Lombardo and today I will ...[Read More]

CR
Cryospheric Sciences

Climate Change & Cryosphere – Glacier retreat poses new challenges in the Central Andes

August 28, 2020
Climate Change & Cryosphere – Glacier retreat poses new challenges in the Central Andes

When you hear of Chilean glaciers, you probably think about the large glaciers of Patagonia. However, glaciers can be found further north in Chile as well (see this previous post). While the melting of the Patagonian glaciers mainly affects the global human population by contributing to sea level rise, the retreat of glaciers in central Chile affects the local human population directly in terms of ...[Read More]

GD
Geodynamics

The Sassy Scientist – Flavours of mantle rheology

August 28, 2020
The Sassy Scientist – Flavours of mantle rheology

While drowning bacon in maple syrup, Eduardo has been wondering: Which rheology best describes the mantle? Dear Eduardo, You sound like a numerical modeller to me: someone who wants an equation (and one that actually works on top of it!) to describe the rheology of 84% of Earth’s total volume. You seem to seek one glove that fits all, and I am afraid to disappoint, but our planet does not wo ...[Read More]