Rocks within the Earth are constantly being subjected to forces that bend, twist, and fracture them, causing them to change shape and size. This process is known as deformation. Polyphase deformation occurs over time when rocks are affected, or stressed, by more than one phase of deformation. Geomorphologist Amirhossein Mojtahedzadeh captured this stunning scene whilst on field work. “This p ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: On the edge of an ice crevasse
Glaciers are persistent bodies of ice at least 100,000 square metres in area and 50 metres thick. They are mostly found in the polar regions but also in mountain ranges, and represent the largest reservoir of freshwater on Earth. This photo was taken by Zervas Efthimios in August 2009, on the climb towards Lenin Peak in the Pamir mountains, Central Asia. “This crevasse appeared just before ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: A mineral under the microscope
Epidote, an abundant rock-forming mineral found in metamorphic rocks, nearly always appears in green, although it may vary in shade and tone. Under a microscope of polarized light, however, it exhibits strong pleochroism, that is, it shows different colors when observed at different angles. The thin section (a laboratory preparation of a mineral or rock sample for use with a polarizing microscope) ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Green river
Thermokarsts occur when solid permafrost melts and soil gives way forming pitted, irregular lands surfaces. They are common in the Arctic, as well as the Himalayas and Swiss Alps. To study them, scientists trace the water using fluorescence dyes, temporarily creating water flows of exotic colours, like the bright green one in this Imaggeo photo. This photo was taken by Simon Gascoin, a researcher ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Quito and Cotopaxi
The sky is painted purple in this stunning evening photo taken near Quito, Ecuador. The country’s second most populous city is illuminated by artificial light, and Cotopaxi, an active volcano forming part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, looks out in the background. Located about 28 km south of Quito, Cotopaxi is the second highest summit in Ecuador (5,897 m) and features one of the few equatori ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Praia das Rodas, Spain
Often listed as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, Praia das Rodas is located on the Isla do Faro, part of the three-island Cíes archipelago within the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park. The beach faces eastwards, towards Vigo and the Galician coast of northwestern Spain, its accumulation of sand forming a land-bridge between two islands during low tide. All three islands are ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Reflecting mountains in Sørfjorden, Norway
Located just southeast of Bergen on the Norwegian Atlantic coast, Hardangerfjorden is the third longest fjord in the world, measuring more than 170 km from the Atlantic Ocean to the Hardangervidda mountain plateau. Its longest branch, Sørfjorden, cuts 50 km from the main fjord and ends at Odda. Geormorphologist Martin Mergili visited the area in 2008, following the 33rd International Geological Co ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Open pit in Mirny, Siberia
This former open-pit diamond mine is currently the second largest excavated hole in the world. After diamond was discovered in there in 1955, the area became the first and largest diamond mine in the Soviet Union, producing up to 2,000 kg of diamond per year during the 1960s. Its surface operations continued until 2001 and the mine was permanently shut in 2011. This photo was taken on 22 July 2008 ...[Read More]
Imaggeo on Mondays: Seeing double
On 6 September 2009, monsoon clouds had built up throughout the day over the Donggi Cona lake in central China. Janneke IJmker, now a researcher at Deltares in the Netherlands, was doing fieldwork there as part of her PhD at RWTH Aachen University in Germany. By dinner time, the sun shone on raindrops from the clouds producing a magnificent double rainbow over the lake, which IJmker captured with ...[Read More]
Photo competition at the EGU 2012 General Assembly
If you are pre-registered for the 2012 General Assembly (Vienna, April 22-27), we invite you to submit photos to our annual photo competition. Winners receive a free registration to next year’s General Assembly! The third edition of the EGU photo competition is now open. Until 10 March, every pre-registered participant of the General Assembly can submit up to two photos on any broad theme related ...[Read More]