Curiosity’s two-step heating experiment of mudstone at Gale crater reveals minerals that formed in the presence of water less than 3 billion years ago.
geochronology
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Resolving a Mystery of the Ages
High-precision radiometric dates shed new light on the puzzling 600,000-year disparity in the timing of one of Earth’s most pivotal timescale boundaries.
Posted inScience Updates
Analog Modeling Recreates Millions of Years in a Few Hours
Second Workshop on Analog Modeling of Tectonic Processes; Austin, Texas, 17–19 May 2017
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Comparing Craters
An analysis suggests that craters degrade faster on Mercury than the Moon, raising questions about landscape evolution on different planetary bodies.
Posted inNews
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.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Quickly Is Mercury’s Surface Evolving?
New measurements of impact craters on Mercury’s smooth plains suggest that the topography of the solar system’s innermost planet is changing at twice the rate of landforms on the Moon.
Posted inNews
Paleomagnetic Data Hint at Link from Earth’s Core to Continents
Earth’s magnetic field waxes and wanes as supercontinents form and break up, suggests a new study postulating a direct connection between our planet’s crust and its core.
Posted inNews
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.
Posted inScience Updates
Better Tools for Tracing the Thermal History of Rocks
Thermo2016: The 15th International Conference on Thermochronology; Maresias, Brazil, 18–23 September 2016
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Catching Glimpses of Centuries-Old Earthquakes
Researchers in the western United States survey the earthquakes that have torn up California for the past millennium.