Mosses support carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, organic matter decomposition and plant pathogen control in soils across the globe, according to a global survey of soil attributes in ecosystems with and without mosses.

Atmospheric observations show the presence of shallow mesoscale circulations in the North Atlantic trades and demonstrate their widespread influence on atmospheric moisture and, consequently, clouds.

Groundwater springs formed during the retreat of a melting glacier are likely hotspots of methane emissions in the high Arctic according to measurements of methane concentrations in springs recently formed in central Svalbard.

Glacier retreat in Greenland not only changes the primary productivity of downstream fjord ecosystems but also the ecosystem structure and functioning, according to seasonal sampling of two downstream fjords.

Anthropogenic greenhouse gases and aerosols have counteracting effects on heat uptake and interbasin transport in the ocean, according to an ensemble of climate model simulations.

Both magnetic reconnection and kinetic instabilities are required to produce magnetotail plasma eruptions, according to high-resolution global simulations of Earth’s magnetosphere.

Uncertainty in stratospheric water vapour projections is reduced using an observational constraint based on historical co-variations between atmospheric temperature and water vapour.

Extreme rainfall events are often linked to climate change based on simple thermodynamic arguments, but complex dynamic processes also play a role. Scientists have a responsibility to ensure they provide accurate information to the media and public.

Research on the energy transition needs to involve all communities and requires breaking the paradigm of traditional industry-funded research, argues Jef Caers from his personal story.

Temporarily overshooting climate targets is a distinct possibility given our current emissions trajectory. It is crucial that we understand which of the associated impacts are reversible, and to what extent.

Inspired by the mineralogist Shulamit Gross’s studies of one of the world’s unique mineral factories, Michael Anenburg discusses the pyrometamorphic minerals formed by fire in the Dead Sea desert.

Nature Geoscience spoke with Dr Shlomit Sharoni, an ocean biogeochemist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Dr Kelly Andersen, a tropical ecologist at Nanyang Technological University about the interplay between phosphorous cycling and the ecosystems they study.

From Dutch painters to ocean sediments, Caroline Slomp discusses the role vivianite plays in the distribution of phosphorus, an essential nutrient for life.