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Aerial photos taken during a 1930s expedition to the southeastern Greenland margin had been classified and lost to science. Their rediscovery highlights how closely geopolitical and scientific ambitions are linked in exploration.
Human influence on the planet is undeniable. Making a switch from exploitation to maintenance of natural resources depends on a step change in communication, to convince the Earth's population of the necessity for a fundamental change of course.
The mid-ocean ridges mark the lines along which the Earth is turning itself inside out through the process of plate tectonics. Advances in technology are helping to reveal the intricate details of the magma systems that feed the rifting process.