Inclusive and equitable geoscience requires identification and removal of structural barriers to participation. Replacing the leaky pipeline metaphor with that of a hostile obstacle course demands that those with power take the lead.

Flooding of the desiccated Mediterranean ~5 Myr ago resulted in east–west differences in salinity stratification, which delayed the return of normal marine conditions throughout the basin, according to proxy records and model simulations.

Suppressed El Niño/Southern Oscillation variability during the mid-Pliocene Warm Period was caused mainly by a northward displacement of the intertropical convergence zone, according to an analysis of a large ensemble of climate model simulations.

Decoupled fault slip and opening, leading to rapid fluid pressurization after initial failure, drives high-pressure fluid migration in low-permeability faults, according to modelling and in situ observations from a borehole fluid-injection experiment.

Geochemical analyses of an andesitic meteorite suggest the continental-crust-like composition is due to partial melting after core formation on a differentiated parent body.

Satellite-based machine-learning analysis of a diffusive volcanic eruption suggests that aerosol climate forcing is dominated by changes in cloud cover, rather than changes in cloud brightness.

Global in situ observations show greenhouse gas emissions from wetlands are lowest when the water table is near the surface, and therefore rewetting wetlands could substantially reduce future emissions.

A new ethics framework urges researchers to promote greater equity in global collaborations.

The Research Briefing is a new format for communicating research papers to our readers.

Rocket emissions and debris from spacecraft falling out of orbit are having increasingly detrimental effects on global atmospheric chemistry. Improved monitoring and regulation are urgently needed to create an environmentally sustainable space industry.

A limited number of earthquakes and volcanoes, primarily located in global north countries, dominate the collective research output on these geohazards. Efforts to improve monitoring at both local and global levels can address this disparity and reduce the associated risk.

Recent missions to the rubble-pile asteroids Bennu and Ryugu have revealed asteroid surfaces that continue to be actively modified by a variety of processes while also recording the geologic history of these small bodies.

Meeting climate targets will require considerable carbon dioxide removal in addition to emission cuts. To achieve this sustainably, a range of methods are needed to avoid adverse effects and match co-benefits with local needs.