Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
The Cambrian evolution of burrowing species is thought to have facilitated sediment mixing. However, sediment fabrics suggest that bioturbation remained insignificant until the appearance of more efficient sediment mixers in the Silurian.
Little is known about the mechanisms that destroy the oldest organic molecules found in seawater. Field and laboratory observations suggest that these molecules are destroyed by the heat and pressure of deep-sea hydrothermal systems.
Leases of land concessions in Cambodia have accelerated in the last ten years. An analysis using high-resolution maps and official documents shows that deforestation rates in the land concessions are higher than in other areas.
Ice streams transport ice rapidly from the interior of the Antarctic ice sheet to the coast. An analysis of surface flow convergence suggests that ice flow and geometry are intricately linked within these ice streams.
Fires related to Amazonian deforestation are a large source of particulate matter emissions. Satellite measurements and models reveal that reductions in deforestation and fire emissions since 2001 have prevented hundreds of premature deaths each year.
Decomposition of soil organic matter could be an important positive feedback to climate change. Geochemical properties of soils can help determine what fraction of soil carbon may be protected from climate-induced decomposition.
The Moon was once thought to be depleted in volatile elements. Analyses of the carbon contents of lunar volcanic glasses reveal that carbon monoxide degassing could have produced the fire-fountain eruptions from which these glasses were formed.
Evidence for a Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth in the sedimentary record has been controversial. A weathered horizon preserved in sedimentary rocks from Svalbard may provide a rare signature of prolonged global glaciation.
Braided channels are rare on ocean floors, but abundant on land. Experiments and theory suggest that deeper flows and rapid overbank deposition restrict braiding in underwater rivers relative to their terrestrial counterparts.
Saturn's F ring is chaperoned on both sides by the tiny moons Prometheus and Pandora. Numerical simulations show that this celestial ballet can result from the collision of two aggregates that evolved out of Saturn's main rings.
Tropospheric ozone is generated from precursor pollutants, but can be blown far afield. Satellite observations show rising ozone levels over China — and almost stable levels over western North America despite stricter regulations.
On 25 April 2015 northern Nepal shifted up to 7 m southward and Kathmandu was raised by 1 m. The causal earthquake failed to fully rupture the main fault beneath the Himalaya and hence a large earthquake appears to be inevitable in Nepal's future.
Antarctic Ice Sheet change during the last glacial cycle is unclear. The timing of moraine development in the Ross basin suggests that the ice sheet reached maximum thickness under the warming temperatures of the last termination.
Anthropogenic climate change alters the risk of some extreme weather events. High-resolution computer simulations suggest that Black Sea warming made the devastating 2012 Krymsk flood possible — a virtually impossible event just 30 years ago.
The ocean is an important source of the potent greenhouse gas N2O. Measurements in the tropical South Pacific have revealed a massive efflux of N2O from the coastal upwelling zone.
Earth's crust was thought to deform uniformly over most of the seismic cycle. Analysis of two centuries of nautical surveys from Chile reveals temporal variability that complicates our view of time-dependent seismic hazards.
