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The oldest minerals on Earth are thought to have formed in the Hadean eon, but the reliability of the dates has been questioned. Atom-probe tomography of an ancient zircon confirms that the mineral formed about 4.4 billion years ago, implying that any mixing event of the silicate Earth occurred before that time.
At least two-thirds of marine genera died out during the end-Permian mass extinction about 252 million years ago. An analysis of extinct and surviving taxa shows no substantial loss in global functional diversity, although there were significant losses in some settings such as tropical reefs.
Feedbacks between the terrestrial carbon cycle and climate change could affect many ecosystem functions and services. A synthesis of global air temperature data reveals non-uniform rates of climate warming on diurnal and seasonal timescales, and heterogeneous impacts on ecosystem carbon cycling.
Despite reports of no trends in snow- and rainfall, rivers in the northwest USA have run lower and lower in recent decades. A closer look at high- and low-altitude precipitation suggests that observational networks have missed a decline in mountain rain and snow that can explain the discrepancy.
Hydrous magnesium-rich silicates play an important role in transporting water into the deep mantle when oceanic plates subduct as slabs, but were thought to dissociate at pressures of 44 GPa. In situ X-ray measurements in conjunction with a multi-anvil apparatus show that hydrous phases of magnesium-rich silicate are stable under lower mantle conditions up to 50 GPa, and may transport water to deeper layers of the mantle.
Changes in climate are amplified in the Arctic region. An analysis of the CMIP5 state-of-the-art climate models reveals that temperature feedbacks are the dominant factor in this amplification, whereas the change in reflectivity of the Earth’s surface as sea ice and snow melt makes only a secondary contribution.
Global mean surface temperatures have not risen much over the past 15 years, despite continuing greenhouse gas emissions. An attempt to explain the warming slow-down with Arctic data gaps is only a small step towards reconciling observed and expected warming.
What happens to manuscripts after they are submitted to our online manuscript tracking system is a source of much speculation. To learn how we decide what is published in Nature Geoscience, read on.
Scientific climate information can save lives and livelihoods, yet its application is not always straightforward. Much of the available information does not describe the risk of threshold events, and misunderstandings can leave society less resilient to climate shocks.
Little is known about the presence of high-latitude sea ice before 2.6 million years ago. A reanalysis of marine sediments from the Arctic Ocean indicates an intermittent presence of perennial sea ice as early as 44 million years ago.
Wind systems determine the transport pathways of air pollutants such as ozone. Simulations with a chemistry-climate model suggest that decadal shifts in atmospheric circulation have helped shape season-specific trends in surface ozone levels in Hawaii since the 1990s.
Tropospheric ozone is a potent greenhouse gas, biological irritant and significant source of highly reactive hydroxyl radicals. Simulations with a chemistry climate model suggest that shifts in atmospheric circulation can account for the seasonally dependent trends in tropospheric ozone levels observed at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, over the past three decades.
Arctic sea ice is a key component of the modern climate system. Marine sediment analyses suggest that perennial sea ice in the Arctic Ocean first formed—transiently—about 44 million years ago.
The age of the Grand Canyon is fervently debated. Thermochronological reconstructions of canyon incision show that although parts of the canyon were carved more than 50 million years ago, two key segments formed less than 6 million years ago, implying that the canyon is a young feature.
The flux of methane from the sea bed to the overlying water column is mitigated by the sulphate-dependent anaerobic oxidation of methane by marine microbes. Laboratory experiments point to the equilibration of stable carbon isotopes during the anaerobic oxidation of methane under sulphate-limited conditions.
