Volume 16 Issue 3, March 2023

Following on from insights gleaned from iron meteorites, Claire Nichols explains why tetrataenite, with its unique magnetic properties, could be key for future renewable energy technologies.

Satellite observations reveal that glaciers on the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula flow 12% faster on average in summer than in winter. These increased flow speeds are attributed to a combination of seasonal atmospheric and oceanographic forcing mechanisms.

A remotely-operated underwater vehicle was used to map the ice, ocean, and seafloor conditions near the point where the floating Ross Ice Shelf meets the seafloor, also known as the grounding line. The study identified refreezing crevasses and geomorphological signatures of past grounding line retreat.

Satellite observations show that 24.1% of tropical moist forests are degraded. In addition to the warming effects of the release of carbon from biomass, satellite data suggest that degradation could also increase the land surface temperatures of the affected regions. This biophysical feedback could hinder forest restoration initiatives.

Lake drainage due to permafrost thaw in the northern permafrost zone is occurring sooner than anticipated.

The occurrence of extremely hot days around the globe is the result of a regionally varying mix of physical processes—advective, adiabatic and diabatic warming—that influence upstream air masses, according to an analysis of the backward trajectories of air contributing to hot extremes.

Measurements show that night-time production of atmospheric nitrate radicals increased in China but decreased in the European Union and the United States from 2014 to 2019. This suggests the increasing contribution of night-time atmospheric oxidation in China to air pollution.

Measurements suggest that emissions from biomass burning drive the rapid growth of particles from nanoscale into sizes relevant for haze formation during the night in Delhi.

Glaciers on the west Antarctic Peninsula flowed on average 12% faster during the summer compared with winter due to a mix of oceanic and atmospheric influences, according to an analysis of remote sensing data from 2014 to 2021.

Observations from a remotely operated underwater vehicle reveal crevasse refreezing and the fine-scale variability in ice and ocean structure at the Kamb Ice Stream grounding line in West Antarctica.

Biophysical and biogeochemical effects of forest degradation cause comparable temperature increases in tropical rainforests, according to analyses of high-resolution satellite observations.

Global estimations of the water-storage capacity in the rooting zone from satellite data reveal plant access to deep water across a third of Earth’s vegetated surface.

Rapid warmings of >10 °C occurred repeatedly during the last glacial period in central North America, probably coinciding with Dansgaard–Oeschger warming events, according to an annually resolved speleothem oxygen isotope record and palaeoclimate simulations.

Iron input into the ocean is a key control on mineral–organic preservation, and therefore the accumulation of oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere, according to a theoretical model and supported by proxy records for iron phases and cycling.

The source of highly oxidized arc magmas may rely on the infiltration of sediment-derived fluids that contain oxidized aqueous species—notably sulfate—into deserpentinization fluids, according to thermodynamic modelling.