New research is helping scientists understand how Arctic dust created by receding glaciers affects local air quality and global climate.
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Dirty Trees Shape Earth’s Hydrologic and Carbon Cycles
Researchers peer into precipitation partitioning—the process by which plants and the organic matter coating them help shape the hydrologic cycle.
Long-Term Drought Harms Mental Health in Rural Communities
In rural and remote communities in Australia, psychological distress worsened during the first few years of a prolonged drought. Other signs of poor mental health persisted beyond that time.
New Volcano, Old Caldera
Researchers suggest a magma chamber sits within an old submarine caldera structure that extends into the mantle. Nearby, a new underwater volcano emerged with a flurry of seismicity.
Hurricane Maria Killed Mangroves Months After Storm
An overgrown channel between a lagoon and the ocean on the Puerto Rican island of Vieques created a backup of freshwater, disrupting the delicate balance of salinity in coastal mangrove forests.
When Did Archaic Humans Control Fire?
A familiar geochemical technique shines a new spotlight on early hominin use of fire.
An Ice Core from the Roof of the World
An innovative National Geographic expedition collected the world’s highest ice core from Mount Everest.
A Robust Proxy for Geomagnetic Reversal Rates in Deep Time
The strength of Earth’s magnetic field in the distant past can tell scientists whether the planet’s magnetic poles were steady or prone to frequent reversals.
Tracing the Moisture That Nourishes the World’s Highest Glacier
Using data from weather stations on and around Mount Everest, scientists find that the Khumbu Glacier receives most of its moisture from the Bay of Bengal.
Do Uranus’s Moons Have Subsurface Oceans?
Scientists tested whether a classic technique could detect subsurface oceans on the moons of Uranus. In this scenario, the planet’s oddball magnetic field offers a big advantage.