A new optical fiber interferometry strain sensor tested off the Oregon coast holds promising prospects for seafloor geodesy.
plate tectonics
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Is Mars Not So Earthlike After All?
Light-colored Gale crater rocks could have formed from intraplate volcanoes, not continental crust, new study finds.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Constraining Central Washington’s Potential Seismic Hazard
Fault geometry and slip rate analyses show deformation in the Yakima Fold Province accelerated in the Pleistocene and has remained elevated, offering new insights into earthquake recurrence intervals.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Linking Mantle Plumes to Volcanoes and Hot Spot Tracks
Study bolsters hypothesis that volcanoes on China’s Hainan Island were formed by a hot spot.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Magma Flow in a Major Icelandic Eruption
Mechanical modeling suggests that previous, undetected eruptions released tectonic stress near the ice-covered Bárðarbunga volcano.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Insights into Continental Deformation in Northwestern Tibet
A new surface velocity map shows strain localized along major strike-slip features, suggesting the central Tibetan Plateau is not deforming as a fluid in response to gravitational collapse.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Evidence for Gravity Tectonics After the Great Sumatra Quake
A new method that applies structural geology principles to aftershock analyses suggests that gravity-driven motion may occur during part of the seismic cycle.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
An Improved Understanding of How Rift Margins Evolve
A new seismic reflection study of the mid-Norwegian margin examines the role that low-angle, high-displacement faults play in the evolution of continental rifts.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Model Simulates Faults and Folds Shaping Each Other
A new model simulates how faulting and folding deep in Earth’s crust shape the way rocks fold and cause earthquakes.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Widespread Mantle Upwelling Beneath Oceanic Transform Faults
A global characterization of mantle flow patterns beneath active oceanic transforms suggests pervasive upwelling stabilizes divergent plate boundaries by warming and weakening these enigmatic features.