Divisions

Cryospheric Sciences

Image of the Week – The GReenland OCEan-ice interaction project (GROCE): teamwork to predict a glacier’s future

Jenny Turton May 31, 2019

The GROCE project, funded by the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF), takes an Earth-System approach to understand what processes are at play for the 79°N glacier (also known as Nioghalvfjerdsfjorden), in northeast Greenland. 79°N is a marine-terminating glacier, meaning it has a floating ice tongue (like an ice shelf) and feeds into the ocean. Approximately 8% of all the ice contain ...[Read More]

GD

Geodynamics

The Sassy Scientist – Analogue Modelling

The Sassy Scientist May 31, 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. David asks: What do you think about analogue modelling? Dear David, Analogue modelling. Well, what’s not to like? Who doesn’t want to spend weeks or months fin ...[Read More]

GD

Geodynamics

The past is the key

Editorial Team 2 May 29, 2019

“The present is the key to the past” is a oft-used phrase in the context of understanding our planet’s complex evolution. But this perspective can also be flipped, reflected, and reframed. In this Geodynamics 101 post, Lorenzo Colli, Research Assistant Professor at the University of Houston, USA, showcases some of the recent advances in modelling mantle convection. Mantl ...[Read More]

TS

Tectonics and Structural Geology

Meeting Plate Tectonics – Nicolas Coltice

David Fernández-Blanco May 28, 2019

These blogposts present interviews with outstanding scientists that bloomed and shape the theory that revolutionised Earth Sciences — Plate Tectonics. Get to know them, learn from their experience, discover the pieces of advice they share and find out where the newest challenges lie! Meeting Nicolas Coltice Nicolas Coltice graduated with a PhD from the École Normale Supérieure of Lyon, France. He ...[Read More]

NH

Natural Hazards

Let the ash fall, but get ready for its consequences

Francisco Cáceres May 27, 2019

The past 18th May marked 39 years since one of the most emblematic volcanic eruptions in historic times: the 1980 Mt St Helens explosive eruption. With a death toll of 57 victims, it is the deadliest volcanic event in U.S. history. If that wasn’t enough, it also destroyed hundreds of houses and roads. When we think about explosive volcanic eruptions what commonly comes in our minds about the possi ...[Read More]

CR

Cryospheric Sciences

Image of the Week – The Lost Meteorites of Antarctica…

Andy Smedley May 24, 2019

When most people think of Antarctica, meteorites aren’t the first things that come to mind. Perhaps they imagine the huge ice shelves, the desolate interior, or perhaps penguin colonies near one of the scientific bases — but usually not meteorites. So why is our project looking for meteorites in Antarctica, and besides, aren’t they all lost until they are found? Let’s start with the A ...[Read More]

HS

Hydrological Sciences

“Everything is interaction and reciprocal”

Matthias Sprenger May 22, 2019

The first time I came across Alexander von Humboldt I was a freshman at the University of Bayreuth. We were proudly told that we were studying environmental science in a region where Humboldt used to work in, prior to his adventures in the Americas. Within EGU, von Humboldt is well known, in connection with the Union medal for “scientists who have performed research in developing regions for the b ...[Read More]

GD

Geodynamics

Geodynamics in Planetary Science

Editorial Team 2 May 22, 2019

It is a question that humankind has been asking for thousands of years: Are we alone in the Universe or are there other worlds like our own? As of today, it is unknown whether or not inhabited planets exist outside of our own solar system. With the discovery of the extrasolar planet 51 Peg b in 1992, it was confirmed that our sun is not the only star that hosts planets and therefore the search for ...[Read More]

TS

Tectonics and Structural Geology

Features from the field: Boudinage

Samuele Papeschi May 19, 2019

The Features from the Field series is back! In our previous posts, we have shown how rocks can deform during ductile deformation, producing folds. Folds very commonly develop in rocks when rock layers are shortened by tectonic forces in a specific direction. On the other hand, when layers are extended, we develop boudins. Boudins – the term comes from the French word for ‘sausage’ – are frag ...[Read More]

CR

Cryospheric Sciences

Image of the Week – Who let the (sun)dogs out?

Brice Van Liefferinge May 17, 2019

How peaceful it is to contemplate the sky … This is especially true of polar northern or southern skies where the low temperatures can engender unique light phenomena. We often tend call them all, wrongly, sundogs, but in fact, many more phenomena exist. To list a few, you can observe a parhelic circle, a 22° halo, a pair of sun dogs, a lower tangent arc, a 46° halo, a circumzenithal arc, a parry ...[Read More]