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26 June 2018
New study offers new evidence for how the Adirondack Mountains formed
The formation mechanism of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York has long posed a geologic mystery. A few mechanisms have been proposed, but until recently tools for evaluating them were not in place. Now, using an advanced seismic imaging method and data available only in the past five years, researchers have constructed a detailed model of the tectonic plate – the crust and the uppermost rigid mantle of the lithosphere under the northeast United States – down to about 62 miles (100 kilometers), in which they discovered a “pillow” of low-density, relatively light rock material. They say a column of this lighter material appears to have squeezed up under the Adirondacks, possibly expanded by heat, to form the dome-shaped mountains.
12 June 2018
South Napa Earthquake linked to summer groundwater dip
A summertime expansion in the Earth’s crust caused by changes in groundwater may have triggered the magnitude-6.0 earthquake in California’s wine country in 2014, according to a new study.
24 May 2018
Subglacial valleys and mountain ranges discovered near South Pole
Extensive ice-penetrating radar data reveal three vast valleys under glaciers in West Antarctica. These valleys could be important in the future as they help to channel the flow of ice from the center of the continent towards the coast.
17 April 2018
Scientists decipher the magma bodies under Yellowstone
Using supercomputer modeling, scientists have unveiled a new explanation for the geology underlying recent seismic imaging of magma bodies below Yellowstone National Park.
4 April 2018
Infrasound recordings give scientists a peek inside volcano’s plume
High-resolution recordings of the powerful infrasound waves generated by an eruption at Ecuador’s Tungurahua volcano have given scientists a rare view inside the activity at the volcano’s mouth. The acoustic waves generated by the July 2013 eruption were one of the most powerful volcanic infrasound recordings ever captured. The low-frequency infrasound waves from the eruption are too low for human ears to hear but were as powerful as waves one meter (three feet) away from a jet engine.
8 February 2018
New Hayward Fault earthquake simulations increase fidelity of ground motions
Scientists have used some of the world’s most powerful supercomputers to model ground shaking for a magnitude (M) 7.0 earthquake on the Hayward Fault and show more realistic motions than ever before.
15 December 2017
Lava-filled blocks on Venus may indicate geological activity
A global view of some well-known deformation features on Venus’s surface may indicate it’s capable of crustal motion, and that motion might even be happening today, scientists report.
Subterranean Serendipity: Scientists stumble upon a new way to sample magma
Scientists have never directly observed magma beneath the Earth’s surface. But thanks to the discovery of easily accessible magma chambers, it may now be possible, report scientists at the 2017 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans.
11 December 2017
Ancient weakening of Earth’s crust explains unusual intraplate earthquakes
New research reveals that mysterious intraplate seismic zones underwent significant deformation hundreds of millions of years ago.
6 December 2017
Scientists capture Earth’s “hum” on ocean floor
Researchers have successfully quantified Earth’s vibrational “hum” using seismic instruments on the bottom of the ocean. A new study determined at the ocean bottom the frequencies at which the Earth naturally vibrates, and confirmed the viability of using ocean instruments to study the phenomenon.
GeoSpace is a blog on Earth and space science, managed by AGU’s Public Information staff. The blog features posts by AGU writers and guest contributors on all sorts of relevant science topics, but with a focus on new research and geo and space sciences-related stories that are currently in the news.