Anisotropic zoning in the upper crust of the Tianshan Tectonic Belt
The collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates resulted in the formation of the Tianshan Tectonic Belt; however, the formation mechanism of Tianshan and the construction of a dynamic model explaining it remain to be realized and an integrated u.....»»
Fate of sinking tectonic plates revealed
Our world's surface is a jumble of jostling tectonic plates, with new ones emerging as others are pulled under. The ongoing cycle keeps our continents in motion and drives life on Earth. But what happens when a plate disappears into the planet's inte.....»»
Student"s research upends understanding of upper atmospheric wind
Space physicist Mark Conde had been seeing something curious in his atmospheric research data since the 1990s......»»
Quantifying spin in WTe2 for future spintronics
A RMIT-led, international collaboration published this week has observed large in-plane anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) in a quantum spin Hall insulator and the spin quantization axis of the edge states can be well-defined......»»
Microbes may have lived in the underground for more than a billion years
A study using the thermal history and biosignatures of the upper few kilometers of some of the oldest rocks on Earth place constraints on the evolutionary history of microbes in the deep biosphere. A new study, published in PNAS, Proceedings of the N.....»»
Proposed Centaur mission could catch comets in the act of formation
From Mercury to the depths of the distant Kuiper Belt, there aren't many unexplored corners of the solar system out there. One class of object, however, remains to be visited: the transitional Centaurs out beyond the orbit of Jupiter. Now, a new stud.....»»
Study explores how climate change may affect rain in U.S. Corn Belt
Air humidity is more important than soil moisture in influencing whether it rains in the United States Corn Belt, an agricultural area in the Midwest, stretching from Indiana to Nebraska and responsible for more than 35% of the world's most important.....»»
Caribbean-South American plate boundary primed for major earthquake
Faults along the central portion of the Caribbean-South American tectonic plate boundary are primed to produce a powerful earthquake, posing a potentially serious hazard to northern Venezuela, according to an international team of scientists......»»
Changing ocean currents are driving extreme winter weather
Throughout Earth's oceans runs a conveyor belt of water. Its churning is powered by differences in the water's temperature and saltiness, and weather patterns around the world are regulated by its activity......»»
Did the Earth tip on its side 84 million years ago?
Hold on to your hats, because scientists have found more evidence that Earth tips over from time to time. We know that the continents are moving slowly due to plate tectonics, but continental drift only pushes the tectonic plates past each other. It.....»»
See the 42 biggest asteroids in our solar system in stunning detail
The European Southern Observatory (ESO) has released images of 42 of the largest asteroids in the asteroid belt, showing their variety of sizes and shapes......»»
Stress in Earth"s crust determined without earthquake data
Scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory have developed a method to determine the orientation of mechanical stress in the earth's crust without relying on data from earthquakes or drilling. This method is less expensive that current approaches, c.....»»
Extinct style of plate tectonics explains early Earth"s flat mountains
Geochemical and geological records provide key insights into Earth's tectonic history, but in the case of mountains during the Proterozoic eon, records conflict with each other: Geochemical evidence says that the crust was thin and hot, which general.....»»
Is new finding an asteroid or a comet? It"s both
The newest known example of a rare type of object in the Solar System—a comet hidden among the main-belt asteroids—has been found and studied, according to a new paper by Planetary Science Institute Senior Scientist Henry Hsieh......»»
US Space Force Awards $87.5 Million To Rocket Lab, SpaceX, Blue Origin, ULA for Next-gen Rocket Testing
The U.S. Space Force, the military branch spun out of the Air Force in December 2019, has announced its next batch of awards for projects related to next-gen rocket engine testing and upper stage improvements. From a report: The awards were granted b.....»»
Mapping of magnetic stripes to discover how fast ocean crust is created
Two University of Wyoming researchers are part of the first-ever mapping of magnetic stripes—one of the foundations of plate tectonics—within the lower gabbroic section of fast-spreading oceanic crust......»»
China is financing infrastructure projects around the world, and many could harm nature and Indigenous communities
China is shaping the future of economic development through its Belt and Road Initiative, an ambitious multi-billion-dollar international push to better connect itself to the rest of the world through trade and infrastructure. Through this venture, C.....»»
What lies beneath: Volcanic secrets revealed
Lava samples have revealed a new truth about the geological makeup of the Earth's crust and could have implications for volcanic eruption early warning systems, a University of Queensland-led study has found......»»
There’s a weird asteroid shaped like a bone whipping around our sun
Astronomers have got their closest look yet at an unusually shaped asteroid orbiting the sun in the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars......»»
Treading wander paths to uncover the geological history of southwest Japan
The geological record of the movement of Earth's "tectonic plates" is preserved in the magnetic orientation of old rocks found in the interior of these tectonic plates. As these rocks form, the magnetic orientation of their magnetic minerals aligns i.....»»
Scientists Locate Likely Origin For the Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid
The asteroid credited with the extinction of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago is likely to have originated from the outer half of the solar system's main asteroid belt, according to new research by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). Space.com rep.....»»