Every day about 50 tons of rocks from space fall on Earth. An examination of these meteorites has inspired a new theory about how exactly these rocks formed.
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Articles on Geology
Displaying 1 - 20 of 189 articles
A maar is a volcanic crater, often filled with water. New research highlights the similarities between oral stories around the world that shed light on the formation of these craters.
Layers of rock provide a historical record of variations in the Earth's orbit, revealing information about the planet's climate billions of years ago.
Even in this fantasy world, geological processes like tectonic plate movement, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions would have built the mountains, carved the rivers, and created vast oceans.
Giant forces slowly move continents across a viscous layer of the Earth, like biscuits gliding over a warm toffee ocean. This stresses the continents, and twists and contorts the crust.
North Korea is a major military threat to the US and its Asian allies, but exactly how powerful are its nuclear weapons? An earth scientist explains why it's hard to answer this question.
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.
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.
Top contributors
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Professor of Geology, University of Adelaide
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Professor in Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge
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Associate professor, University of Melbourne
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Chair of Geology & Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor, University of Melbourne
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Professor of Astrobiology, UNSW
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Earth and paleo-climate scientist, Australian National University
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Instrument Scientist, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation
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Professor of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington
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Professor of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Bournemouth University
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Research Fellow, University of Adelaide
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Director of the Macquarie Planetary Research Centre/Associate Professor in Geodynamics, Macquarie University
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Associate Professor of Geology, University of Western Australia
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Professor, Chair in Geology & Petroleum Geology, University of Aberdeen
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Lecturer at Department of Geology, Faculty of Earth Sciences and Technology, Institut Teknologi Bandung
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NERC Advanced Research Fellow and Lecturer in Geology, University of Hull
