A paleooceanographer describes her ninth sea expedition, this time retrieving cylindrical ‘cores’ of the sediment and rock that’s as much as two miles down at the ocean floor.
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Articles on Geology
Displaying 161 - 180 of 343 articles
If you’ve never heard of a form of wave called a ‘seiche’ – which can occur in swimming pools during earthquakes – this is your chance to catch up.
A psychologist explains why we should accept that we will never live in the Anthropocene.
In 2004 an underwater avalanche destroyed an oil platform off Louisiana, causing a 14-year spill. An expert on oil and gas seeps in the Gulf of Mexico warns that this could happen in other places.
Since 2008, Landsat data has been free for the world to use, spurring new applications and scientific research. But that door could soon slam shut.
Molluscs that have shells - like pipis, clams and oysters - have to build their own shell from scratch. And they keep building it their whole life, using chemicals from the sea and their own bodies.
When you study volcanoes at mid-ocean ridges, doing fieldwork means becoming an aquanaut – diving thousands of feet to the ocean floor in the submersible Alvin, trading tight quarters for amazing views.
Red Dead Redemption 2 has been criticised for its portrayals of violence, but it could also be teaching players the lost art of reading a map.
When I was little, geologists worked out Earth’s surface was made of pieces, like a giant puzzle. Those pieces, called “tectonic plates”, move and bump into each other and mountains form.
Our research shows that, millions of years from now, fossilised chicken bones will mark the era of human domination.
The Earth’s core is cooling down, and one day it will be completely solid – when that happens, Earth might look a lot like Mars.
Liquid minerals containing sulfur behave like a hot knife through butter – they’re so corrosive they can melt their way through solid rock.
Academics from different disciplines come Head to Head in this series to tackle topical debates.
To be better prepared for future eruptions there’s a need to understand and monitor poorly known volcanoes, even in remote places.
Setting the scene for ancient Silk Road trading and now China’s Belt and Road initiative, the Tianshan has changed humanity. Geological evidence shows us how this incredible mountain range formed.
Australia’s slowly heading north to one day become part of Asia, but a study of the rocks tell us that’s not the first time there’s been a connection.
A meteorite hitting Earth at many kilometres per second puts ‘ground zero’ target rocks under immense pressure. A shock wave faster than the speed of sound can result – and new materials created.
Gravity, not magma, is forcing Etna to move, increasing the chances of collapse.
The ocean floor holds unique information about Earth’s history. Scientific ocean drilling, which started 50 years ago, has yielded insights into climate change, geohazards and the key conditions for life.
How do the narrow ribbons of sand that line the Atlantic and Gulf coasts withstand the force of hurricanes? The answer lies in their shape-shifting abilities.
Top contributors
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Professor of Geology, University of Adelaide
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Professor of Palaeobiology, University of Leicester
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Professor in Earth Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Emeritus Professor of Mineral Physics, University of Cambridge
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Professor of Geophysics, University of Sydney
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Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University
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Associate Professor of Earthquake Science, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Geochronology, Curtin University
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Adjunct professor, UNSW Sydney
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Harold T. Stearns Professor of Earth Science, Wesleyan University
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Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor Emeritus, The University of Melbourne
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Professor of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Bournemouth University
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Professor of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington
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Associate Professor - Igneous Petrology/Volcanology, The University of Queensland
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Honorary researcher, The University of Melbourne
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ARC DECRA Fellow, University of Sydney
