La meteorización de los primeros continentes podría haber puesto en marcha la formación de cratones, las raíces inmutables de los continentes.
Earth’s crust
Posted inEditors' Vox
Seismology Helps Us Understand How Material Flows in Earth’s Deepest Mantle
Recent progress in the analysis of seismic waves enables us to determine where, and sometimes how, the base of the mantle deforms.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Cómo los movimientos del manto dan forma a la superficie terrestre
Dos nuevos conjuntos de datos ayudan a los investigadores a separar las influencias de la tectónica de placas y el movimiento del manto en la topografía de la superficie.
Posted inNews
Radioactive Sediments May Have Built Earth’s Cratons
Weathering of the earliest continents could have set in motion the formation of cratons, the immutable roots of continents.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Tiny Cracks Lead to Large-Scale Faults
Researchers could soon gain new insights into fault development in Earth’s brittle crust, thanks to a computational approach that harnesses experimental observations of microscale rock damage.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Ancient Crustal Weaknesses Contribute to Modern Earthquakes in West Africa
Researchers dive into the mechanisms and stresses that trigger earthquakes along the passive margin and interior of the continent.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Mantle Movements Shape Earth’s Surface
Two new data sets help researchers tease apart the influences of plate tectonics and mantle movement on surface topography.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Mantle Heat May Have Boosted Earth’s Crust 3 Billion Years Ago
Information from igneous zircon molecules gives researchers new insight into the workings of inner Earth.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Hydraulic Fractures Are Lazy
The layering of rock masses can help constrain and focus the growth of hydraulic fractures.
Posted inNews
From First Continents to Fancy Countertops
A new study suggests melting gabbros may have helped form Earth’s first continents, riling a long-standing debate.