Tag Archives: Earth Sciences

The Other Gutenberg

Seismologist’s legacy includes discontinuities in Earth’s mantle and beyond. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

The Notorious E15 in Pictures

Physics Today’s Earth sciences correspondent took her camera on a field trip to the scourge of transatlantic air travelers in 2010, the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Building Sea-floor Features in the Lab

Researchers in Canada investigate overpressures needed to form ocean-floor domes. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Burgess Shale-type Fossil Preservation

Extraordinary soft-tissue preservation is due to early inhibition of microbial activity. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Will she blow? Magma Chamber Inflation at Santorini Caldera

Recent geodetic unrest at Santorini caldera in the Aegean Sea may or may not foreshadow an eruption. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Explaining Sheeting Joints on Yosemite’s Half Dome

The fractures that lead to rockfall on Yosemite National Park’s Half Dome are best explained by curvature and forces parallel to the rock surface. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Two Recent Events (Geologically Speaking)

Two past events—one recorded in the Old Testament, the other in the diary of an 18th-century missionary—have left evidence of geophysical processes that are relevant today. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Geophysics Yesterday and Today

To celebrate the 2011 December AGU meeting, Rachel Berkowitz takes a look at the first paper published in Journal of Geophysical Research. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Keepers of the Wind in the Pacific Northwest

By taking advantage of some unusual geological formations, scientists in Washington and Oregon are finding ways to make wind energy viable. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Discontinuity under the Aloha State

An advanced seismic imaging technique has provided a more detailed picture of mantle structure beneath the Hawaii islands, but it hasn’t resolved how the islands formed. Continue reading

Posted in Physics Today | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment