Carbon isotope data suggest an alternative source of nutrients to the Eastern Equatorial Pacific during glacial periods.
Geochemistry
Manning and Marty Receive 2017 Norman L. Bowen Award
Craig Manning and Bernard Marty will receive the 2017 Norman L. Bowen Award at the 2017 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, to be held 11–15 December in New Orleans, La. The award recognizes “outstanding contributions to volcanology, geochemistry, or petrology.”
Scientists Simulate New Mechanism of Fluid Flow in Earth’s Crust
Three-dimensional high-performance computer modeling reveals the behavior of fluid transport waves generated by chemical reactions that take place during metamorphism.
Is the Lower Crust Convecting Beneath Mid-Ocean Ridges?
The first attempt to couple models of hydrothermal circulation and magmatic convection along fast-spreading ridges may explain the spacing of hydrothermal vent fields along the East Pacific Rise.
Clues Found That Earth May Have a Thermostat Set to “Habitable”
Weathering of rocks can control Earth’s temperature over geologic timescales, new geochemical data suggest.
New Technique Could Help Scientists Track Nitrous Oxide Sources
A long-term study in Switzerland reveals the promise of a new method to determine isotopic composition of the potent greenhouse gas.
Tracing Water Through the Critical Zone
The authors of a recent paper in Reviews of Geophysics describe how isotope hydrology offers new insights into interactions at the interface between soil, vegetation, and the atmosphere.
A Volcanic Trigger for Earth’s First Mass Extinction?
Abnormally high levels of mercury in Ordovician rocks may imply that a huge surge of volcanism took place at a time when much of the planet’s ocean life vanished.
Competing Models of Mountain Formation Reconciled
The author of a prize-winning paper published in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems describes new insights into crustal mechanics and the formation of the Himalaya.
What’s the Average Methane Isotope Signature in Arctic Wetlands?
Aircraft measurements confirm that methane emissions from northern European wetlands exhibit a uniform regional carbon isotopic signature, despite considerable ground-level heterogeneity.