New data synthesis suggests that varying rates of trench retreat along the margin of the Gondwana supercontinent were responsible for the curvature of the Tasmanide mountain chains.
Research Spotlights
Research spotlights are plain-language summaries of recent articles published in AGU’s suite of 24 journals.
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How Nitrogen Contributes to Permafrost Carbon Dynamics
Nitrogen released into the soil from thawing permafrost in the Arctic could accelerate soil carbon decomposition and alter carbon dynamics, with global implications.
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A More Detailed Look at Earth’s Most Poorly Understood Crust
The second-generation Antarctic Digital Magnetic Anomaly Project offers a powerful new tool for probing the structure and evolution of the southernmost continent’s lithosphere.
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A Closer Look at the Sustainability of Our Groundwater Aquifers
Researchers use a new approach to assessing the world’s largest aquifers in hopes of improving groundwater management during drought periods.
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Hydrology Dictates Fate of Carbon from Northern Hardwood Forests
As spring snowmelt and fall rains inundate northern hardwood forests with moisture, soil bacteria get moving and increase carbon exports to the atmosphere and into nearby water bodies.
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Conserving Riverside Habitat Could Bolster Bottom Lines
Palm oil is in demand, and its agricultural footprint is expanding in the tropics. New research suggests that habitat buffers could improve conservation and prevent erosion that cuts into economic returns.
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Equatorial Ionospheric Scintillation During Daytime
Scintillation—flickers and distortions in radio waves passing through the ionosphere—can happen during daytime and at much lower dip latitudes than previously thought.
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Yellow Detritus in the Oceans May Help Reduce Warming
Dissolved organic matter in the oceans absorbs light near the water’s surface, leading to cooler waters that may help mitigate regional climate warming.
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Wind Speed Governs Turbulence in Atmospheric Inversions
Measurements made during a field campaign in Idaho indicate that the speed of winds 2 meters above Earth’s surface determines the type of turbulence present in nighttime inversions.
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Autumn Warming No Longer Accelerating Carbon Loss in the North
An analysis of Point Barrow’s 40-year record points to the importance of calculating the carbon cycle’s response to temperature during the northern latitudes’ non-growing season.