Regular Features

Geosciences Column: Soil in art

Laura Roberts-Artal September 18, 2015

Soil profiles and associated vegetation represented as paintings in Walter Kubiena’s textbook (1953) Bestimmungsbuch und Systematik der Böden Europas (The Soils of Europe). Taken from Feller et al., 2015 .

When you think of soil, what is the first thing that comes to mind? The answer will depend on your perception of soil: to some it has a patriotic meaning (“soil of Britain”, for example), while to others it has a strong agricultural connection and to an Earth scientist, well, it’ll depend on their field of expertise. A geotechnical engineer’s perception of soil is different to how it might be view ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: Tombstones Mountains

Matt Herod September 14, 2015

Tombstone Mountains . Credit: Matt Herod (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

This week’s Imaggeo image is brought to you by one of our network bloggers, Matt Herod. Of the image, Matt said ” this particular one is one of my all time favourites. I have even blown it up and hung it on my wall at home,” and we couldn’t agree more; this Canadian landscape is breathtaking. Dive into this post and let Matt take you on a tour of the hydrology, archaeology ...[Read More]

Imaggeo on Mondays: Electron cloud gone wrong

Laura Roberts-Artal September 7, 2015

Electron cloud gone wrong. Credit: Sarah Glynn (distributed via imaggeo.egu.eu)

Deciphering the past history of rocks and what they might reveal about the Earth’s future is a key part of geology, and tools such as Ion Probes can be used by Earth Scientists to extract valuable information about a rock’s past. Today’s Imaggeo on Monday’s image was acquired by Sarah Glynn, a researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand, in South Africa, who was analysing a potential calcite ...[Read More]

Geosciences Column: The Oldest Eurypterid

David Marshall September 1, 2015

Artists reconstruction of Pentecopterus decorahensis in the Ordovician seas of what is now Iowa, USA. Image by Patrick Lynch.

The name of a newly found fossil of sea scorpion draws inspiration from ancient Greece warships and is a unique example of exceptional preservation, shedding light on the rich life of this bygone sea critter, explains David Marshall of Palaeocast fame. To learn more about the importance of giving new fossils names and what Pentecopterus decorahensis (as the new fossil is formally called) teaches u ...[Read More]