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Processes and triggers of deformation in big, slow-moving landslides are often unclear. The Slumgullion slide seems to stick and slip in tune with atmospheric tides.
Carbon capture and storage could be the only way of managing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels responsibly. But it is by no means clear that it will work.
In a warming climate, large lakes experience increasing water temperatures and ice loss. Observations from Lake Superior show that regional temperature rise has led to an increase in wind speeds over the lake.
Volcanic rocks on the sea floor are home to diverse and abundant microbial communities. Microscopic and spectroscopic analyses suggest that iron and manganese derived from hydrothermal venting support microbial colonization of the ocean crust.
The fact that cumulative carbon dioxide emissions are more important than annual emission rates calls for a fresh approach to climate change mitigation. One option would be a mandatory link between carbon sequestration and fossil fuel extraction.
Storage of the carbon dioxide that is produced by burning fossil fuels is one way to avoid the damaging consequences of climate change. A range of observations suggests that geological carbon storage is much less risky than unabated carbon emissions to the atmosphere.
The conversion of coal into liquid fuel is one of the dirtiest ways to produce transportation fuel. But if carbon is captured and stored, and some biomass is added, it could become the cleanest way to power jets, trucks and trains.
The path towards mitigating global warming is going to be tortuous. Capturing carbon dioxide and pumping it directly into the deep ocean to avoid atmospheric build-up is an option that has been dismissed prematurely.
The generation of fluids as mountain belts form is thought to be related to the heating that accompanies rock burial. Mineral-equilibria modelling suggests that the exhumation of greywacke — a common rock type in mountain-forming regions — following heating also generates new fluid.
A set of lakes filled with liquid hydrocarbon have been discovered in the high latitudes of Saturn’s moon Titan. A quantification of these lakes shows a dramatic hemispheric asymmetry in their occurrence, which could be a result of the orbital configurations of Titan and Saturn.
Accurate quantification of Antarctic ice-sheet mass balance and its contribution to global sea-level rise remains challenging. Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment data spanning the period April 2002 to January 2009 confirm earlier estimates of ice loss for Antarctica and indicate that East Antarctica started losing mass in about 2006.
Zircon is a common mineral in continental crustal rocks, and is often used in the reconstruction of geological processes. Analyses of the isotopic and trace element compositions of large zircons of gem quality from the Bohemian Massif reveal that zircons can remain intact in the upper mantle under specific chemical conditions for about 20–60 million years.
A significant number of the early aftershocks following large shallow earthquakes are missing in existing earthquake catalogues. An analysis of the waveforms of 3,647 relocated earthquakes along the Parkfield section of the San Andreas fault reveals 11 times more aftershocks within three days of the 2004 Parkfield earthquake than listed in a standard catalogue.
Carbon dioxide uptake by the terrestrial biosphere has the potential to mitigate fossil fuel emissions. Comprehensive estimates of Europe's greenhouse-gas balance suggest that any uptake of carbon dioxide by the terrestrial biosphere is offset by methane and nitrous oxide emissions.
Efforts to control climate change require the stabilization of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. An assessment of the trends in sources and sinks of atmospheric carbon dioxide suggests that the sinks are not keeping up with the increase in carbon dioxide emissions, but uncertainties are still large.
Exposed rocks on underwater mountains and ridges host abundant and diverse microbial communities. X-ray and microscopic analyses of volcanic rocks associated with Loihi seamount in Hawaii suggest that seafloor microbes may commonly be sustained by energy inputs from the water column.
