Discovering new resting places of these rare and information-rich fossils will be critical to understanding the largest expansion of life in Earth’s history, according to researchers.
fossils & paleontology
Tracking Deep-Earth Processes from Rapid Topographic Changes
Rapid elevation-rise in Turkey, tracked by marine sediments that now sit at 1.5 km in elevation, is linked to deep-Earth processes that can explain short-lived, extreme rates of topographic change.
Plotting the Pliocene Polar Front
Understanding changing conditions in the south polar oceans during the warm late Pliocene period may help predict the impact of contemporary warming.
Fossils Provide New Clues to Tibetan Plateau’s Evolution
The bones of ancient rhinos, elephants, and fish constrain when the Tibetan Plateau rose high enough to prevent migration, a move that forced animals to adapt to high-altitude conditions.
Hunting Rare Fossils of the Ediacaran
The search for fossil imprints and casts of squishy organisms takes time, perseverance, and sometimes a sprinkle of luck.
Signatures of Dinosaur Poop Found in Cretaceous Coal Seams
Coal analysis suggests that plant-eating dinosaurs, by walking kilometers between their picnic areas and their toilets, distributed important nutrients widely and boosted ecosystem health.
Microfossils Illuminate Ancient Ocean Currents
Researchers use dissolved silicon concentrations to map out how currents may have changed millennia ago in the Pacific.
Earth's Carbon-Climate Feedbacks Varied in Past Warming Episodes
Records from drill holes in the eastern equatorial Pacific indicate that Earth's orbital eccentricity played an important role in controlling climate as the planet warmed.
How Did Fragile Early Microbes Become Fossils?
During the Ediacaran period more than a half billion years ago, clay mineral coats likely shielded delicate remains, helping them become exquisitely preserved in rock, recent experiments suggest.
Characterizing Superwarm Periods in Earth's History
DeepMIP Kickoff Meeting; Boulder, Colorado, 14–15 January 2016