Between 26-15 My ago, forests covering west-central North America gave way to open, grassy habitats. Now, oxygen isotope records suggest this shift is owed to drier winters and increased aridity.
North America
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Western U.S. “Megafloods” Might Not Have Been So Mega
The flooding that carved eastern Washington State 20,000 to 12,000 years ago could have been 80% smaller than the canyons’ volume today.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Role of Magma in the Birth of the Atlantic Ocean
High-resolution seismic models of the Nova Scotia margin reveal a role for magmatism in continental breakup, even at magma-poor sections of the eastern North American margin.
Posted inNews
Crowdsourced Science Helps Map Vancouver’s “Smellscape”
Exposure to stinky odors can affect human health, but quantifying smells can be difficult.
Posted inNews
Melting Arctic Sea Ice Strengthens Tides
If climate change throws off the seasonal freeze-thaw cycle of Arctic sea ice, it could trigger a reinforcing cycle of sea ice melt in parts of the Canadian Arctic.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
The Great Unconformities?
New thermochronology data and thermal history modeling from the Canadian Shield show that the Great Unconformity formed there later than elsewhere in North America and may represent another event.
Posted inNews
An Iceberg May Have Initiated a Submarine Landslide
A new study shows that icebergs may initiate submarine landslides when they collide with the seafloor.
Posted inNews
An Ancient Meltwater Pulse Raised Sea Levels by 18 Meters
Meltwater pulse 1A, a period of rapid sea level rise after the last deglaciation, was powered by melting ice from North America and Scandinavia, according to new research.
Posted inNews
Why Trillions of Jellyfish Washed Ashore from Canada to California
Although warming oceans may make population booms and mass strandings more common, the species may ultimately be one of the beneficiaries of climate change.
Posted inScience Updates
Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, Especially for Continents
A decade-long research collaboration has revealed that the split between Africa and North America roughly 200 million years ago was more drawn out than previously thought.