Solid Earth sciences articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Dynamics of peralkaline rhyolite eruptions remain elusive due to the lack of direct observations. Here the authors provide X-ray Computed Tomography, thermal modelling and field data of fluidal shaped pyroclasts and show that peralkaline rhyolite pumice cones are the product of moderate to intense eruptions.

    • Ben Clarke
    • , Eliza S. Calder
    •  & Gezahegn Yirgu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The reason for dolomite being widespread in ancient rocks remains an unsolved conundrum and artificial attempts to form well-ordered dolomite at ambient conditions have proven very challenging. Here, the authors provide laboratory experiments that show the acceleration of dolomite formation via dissolved zinc.

    • Veerle Vandeginste
    • , Oliver Snell
    •  & Arne Vandeginste

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The origin of giant Kiruna-type iron ores has been debated for nearly 100 years. This study employs extensive stable isotope data from Kiruna-type ores worldwide and magmatic and hydrothermal reference materials to show that iconic Kiruna-type ores originate primarily from ortho-magmatic processes.

    • Valentin R. Troll
    • , Franz A. Weis
    •  & Katarina P. Nilsson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Glacier meltwater can penetrate the glacier bed and act as a lubricant, accelerating retreat. Here, the authors use the unique Glacsweb wireless probe at Skálafellsjökull in Iceland and find evidence for two types of stick-slip events: small diurnal events in summer and large multiday events in winter.

    • Jane K. Hart
    • , Kirk Martinez
    •  & David S. Young

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Previously, little direct evidence has been found to link large volcanic eruption events with the end-Permian mass extinction. Here, the authors find that mercury enrichment and isotope records in marine sections across the globe can be linked to increased volcanic activity, which resulted in the protracted Permian-Triassic biocrisis

    • Jun Shen
    • , Jiubin Chen
    •  & Noah J. Planavsky

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The current paradigm of material transport across the ocean-floor by gravity currents, is of turbulent flows with mixing processes analogous to rivers. However, uniquely high-resolution field data demonstrate that this paradigm is flawed and that gravity currents are analogous to self-organised atmospheric jets.

    • R. M. Dorrell
    • , J. Peakall
    •  & D. Tezcan

  • Perspective
    | Open Access

    The primary causes of dramatic variations in volcanic flux and composition along strike in subduction zones remain largely unknown. Here we use a promising new approach to show that along-strike volcanic variability in the Quaternary Cascades Arc is primarily due to variations in the flux of basalt into the base of the crust, rather than crustal magma storage.

    • C. B. Till
    • , A. J. R. Kent
    •  & B. W. Pitcher

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Continuous continental rift zones evolve from enigmatic interactions between individual propagating rift segments. Here, the authors document progressive focusing of tectonic and magmatic activity caused by interactions between the Kenyan and Ethiopian rift segments of the East African Rift.

    • Giacomo Corti
    • , Raffaello Cioni
    •  & Anne Glerum

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In the 1000 km long Izu-Bonin subduction zone to the south of Tokyo, the Pacific Plate descends beneath the Philippine Sea Plate. Here the authors use teleseismic double-difference tomography to image the complex morphology of the Izu-Bonin slab, especially in the mantle transition zone.

    • Haijiang Zhang
    • , Fan Wang
    •  & Hao Guo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The effect of fluid viscosity on fault mechanics is mainly conjectured by theoretical models. Here, the authors present experimental data from rock friction experiments, showing both static and dynamic friction coefficients to decrease with viscosity and dynamic friction to depend on the Sommerfeld number.

    • C. Cornelio
    • , E. Spagnuolo
    •  & M. Violay

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The 2016 Kaikōura earthquake in New Zealand raised the discussion about how a complex fault system operates. Here the authors propose a dynamic rupture scenario that reproduces key characteristics of the event and show that the fault system works at low apparent friction.

    • Thomas Ulrich
    • , Alice-Agnes Gabriel
    •  & Wenbin Xu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The amount of carbon stored in closed hidden reservoirs is unknown. Here the authors use a computational approach to study the evolution of carbon species and observe polymerization of carbon atoms at high pressures, illustrating the potential for a significant carbon reservoir in the Earth’s deep interior.

    • Natalia V. Solomatova
    • , Razvan Caracas
    •  & Craig E. Manning

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Phyllosilicate minerals are critical components of seismogenic fault, shear and subduction zones. Here, the authors provide a new deformation mechanism for phyllosilicates, based on newly discovered crystallographic defects in biotite (ripplocations), affecting our understanding of fault zone processes.

    • Joe Aslin
    • , Elisabetta Mariani
    •  & Michel W. Barsoum

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Using seismic data and numerical modelling, here, the authors characterize the three-month period of unrest occurring prior to the 2017 Agung eruption (Bali, Indonesia). They observe a large uplift signal located at ~5 km from Agung summit corresponding to the emplacement of a 10 km deep magma intrusion between Agung edifice and Batur caldera, suggesting a potential magmatic connection between the two volcanic systems.

    • Fabien Albino
    • , Juliet Biggs
    •  & Devy Kamil Syahbana

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ferromanganese minerals are abundant in marine environments but the extent of these minerals in subseafloor sediments remains unknown. Here the authors find abundant ferromanganese microparticles in oxic pelagic clays, accounting for 14–16% of the new estimate of the global manganese budget (9.2–47.4 Tt).

    • Go-Ichiro Uramoto
    • , Yuki Morono
    •  & Fumio Inagaki

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Multistage crystallization of transition metal oxides often proceeds through a number of metastable intermediates. Here, the authors shed light on this phenomenon by extending Pourbaix diagrams to capture the metastable and nanoscale thermodynamics of manganese oxide nucleation.

    • Wenhao Sun
    • , Daniil A. Kitchaev
    •  & Gerbrand Ceder

  • Review Article
    | Open Access

    The evolution of the Antarctic Ice Sheet is driven by a combination of climate forcing and non-climatic feedbacks. In this review, the authors focus on feedbacks between the Antarctic Ice Sheet and the solid Earth, and the role of these feedbacks in shaping the response of the ice sheet to past and future climate changes.

    • Pippa L. Whitehouse
    • , Natalya Gomez
    •  & Douglas A. Wiens

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Tectonic faults weaken during slip in order to accelerate and produce earthquakes. Here the authors show a mechanism for weakening faults through the transformation of quartz to amorphous nanoparticulate wear powders that lubricate friction experiments, and transform back to quartz under geologic conditions.

    • Christie D. Rowe
    • , Kelsey Lamothe
    •  & Stefano Aretusini

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Iron oxides prevail in the deep Earth, at extreme pressures and temperatures, with different stoichiometries than in ambient conditions. Here, high-pressure synchrotron X-ray spectroscopic measurements reveal the oxidation states of Fe and O in iron superoxide, shedding light on the puzzling chemistry of iron and oxygen in the deep Earth

    • Jin Liu
    • , Qingyang Hu
    •  & Wendy L. Mao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The solubility of sulfur in basaltic melt has important implications for the formation of magmatic ore deposits. Here, the authors show that magma ascent and sulfur-degassing influence the degree to which basaltic magmas are enriched in economically-important chalcophile and siderophile elements.

    • C. D. J. Reekie
    • , F. E. Jenner
    •  & H. M. Williams

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Volatile exchange between the Earth’s interior and surface layers is one of the central issues in mantle geochemistry. Here the authors present evidence that chlorine is transferred from the surface to the deep mantle by subducted oceanic crust, forming a chlorine-rich mantle reservoir.

    • Takeshi Hanyu
    • , Kenji Shimizu
    •  & Tsuyoshi Ishikawa

  • Article
    | Open Access

    There is increasing evidence that the seismicity of large Himalayan earthquakes can be bimodal, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, the authors present a model and show that the bimodal seismicity results from a relatively higher friction and a non-planar geometry of the Himalayan megathrust.

    • Luca Dal Zilio
    • , Ylona van Dinther
    •  & Jean-Philippe Avouac

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The causes of Mid-Pleistocene Transition global cooling 1 million years ago are still unknown. Here, the authors find the subarctic North Pacific became stratified during these glaciations due to closure of the Bering Strait, which would have removed CO2 from the atmosphere and caused global cooling.

    • Sev Kender
    • , Ana Christina Ravelo
    •  & Ian R. Hall

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The role of thermochemical oxidation of methane (TOM) by high-valence metal oxides as a potential methane sink remains poorly understood. Here, the authors present evidence of TOM induced by Mn(Fe) oxides in a sedimentary basin, which yields calcite with extremely negative δ13C values (−70 to −22.5‰, VPDB).

    • Wen-Xuan Hu
    • , Xun Kang
    •  & Hai-Guang Wu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mantle-sourced magmas erupted at hotspot volcanoes can provide clues to the sulphur cycle over geological timescales. In this work, sulphur isotopes were analysed in crystal-hosted inclusions entrapped at depth, and reveal the presence of post-Archaean recycled material in the Canary Island mantle.

    • Patrick Beaudry
    • , Marc-Antoine Longpré
    •  & John Stix

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Thermodynamic calculations suggest that condensed carbonaceous matter should be the dominant product of abiotic organic synthesis during serpentinization of the oceanic crust at Mid-Ocean Ridges. Here the authors report natural occurrences of such carbonaceous matter formed during low temperature alteration.

    • Marie Catherine Sforna
    • , Daniele Brunelli
    •  & Bénédicte Ménez

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Weak lower crustal flow in Tibet has been invoked to reconcile geophysical observations, yet viscosity estimates vary from 1016 to 1021 Pa·s. Here the authors show that viscous buckling of the upper crust in response to lower crust flow (viscosity ~1020 Pa·s) is responsible for the observed extension in Tibet.

    • Sarah H. Bischoff
    •  & Lucy M. Flesch

  • Article
    | Open Access

    As silica melts are believed to be important components of the Earth’s mantle, their structure should determine many of its properties. Here, the authors identify two crystalline modifications of SiO2, whose local structures closely resemble those of known melts, providing a structural model for their atomic ordering at the nanoscale.

    • E. Bykova
    • , M. Bykov
    •  & L. Dubrovinsky

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Earth degassing of CO2-rich fluids contributes significantly to the global carbon budget but its link to tectonic regimes remains unclear. Here, the authors use global geological datasets to show that there is a positive spatial correlation between CO2 discharges and extensional tectonic regimes.

    • Giancarlo Tamburello
    • , Silvia Pondrelli
    •  & Dmitri Rouwet

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Boron is one of the main proxies for seawater-derived fluids in subduction zone volcanics and it is vital to characterise the location and concentration of boron in the oceanic lithosphere. Here the authors show that boron concentration in the mantle of downgoing slabs has been overestimated, because boron is strongly decoupled from water in the hydration process.

    • Andrew M. McCaig
    • , Sofya S. Titarenko
    •  & Samuele Agostini

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Iron oxides exist in a variety of polymorphs at different pressure and temperature conditions, displaying important magnetic properties, and are major constituents of the Earth’s interior. Here the authors investigate the structural and electronic changes in the uncommon epsilon phase under compression to deep Mantle pressures.

    • J. A. Sans
    • , V. Monteseguro
    •  & C. Popescu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The interaction between seasonally-induced non-tectonic and tectonic deformation along the Himalayan plate boundary is still debated. Here, the authors propose that seasonal hydrological loading can influence tectonic deformation along this plate boundary using continuous GPS measurements and satellite data.

    • Dibyashakti Panda
    • , Bhaskar Kundu
    •  & Amit Kumar Bansal

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Understanding the response of marine productivity and CO2 drawdown to past warming events can provide important insights into the future. Here, the authors use bacterial magnetite nanoparticle fossils to reconstruct nutrient supply and marine deoxygenation during the Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum.

    • Liao Chang
    • , Richard J. Harrison
    •  & Xiang Zhao

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Reinjection of saltwater, co-produced with oil, has the potential to trigger damaging earthquakes. Here, using Oklahoma and Kansas as an example, the authors present a new physics-based methodology to forecast future probabilities of potentially damaging induced-earthquakes in space and time.

    • Cornelius Langenbruch
    • , Matthew Weingarten
    •  & Mark D. Zoback

  • Article
    | Open Access

    With the discovery of large rocky exoplanets called Super-Earths, questions have arisen regarding the properties of their interiors and their ability to produce a magnetic field. Here, the authors show that under high pressure, molten silicates are semi-metallic and that magma oceans would host a dynamo process.

    • François Soubiran
    •  & Burkhard Militzer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bend faulting prior to subduction is considered to promote hydration, yet the relationship remains ambiguous. Here, via analysis of seismic surveys from the Japan and Kuril trenches junction, the authors show that pre-subduction bend faulting and post-subduction plate hydration are strongly correlated.

    • Gou Fujie
    • , Shuichi Kodaira
    •  & Tomoaki Yamada

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The Cretaceous Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 represents one of the warmest episodes in the last 250 million years. Here, the authors present spore-pollen data and temperature estimates (TEX86) across an expanded stratigraphic section illustrating the dynamic response of vegetation during this exceptionally warm interval.

    • Ulrich Heimhofer
    • , Nina Wucherpfennig
    •  & Ariane Kujau

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The Tibetan plateau is manifested by contrasting along-strike lithospheric structures, but the correlation with multi-terrane configuration remains challenging. Here, the authors show the crucial roles of the original geometric shape of accreted terranes in regulating the lithospheric evolution of Tibetan plateau.

    • Pengpeng Huangfu
    • , Zhong-Hai Li
    •  & Yaolin Shi

  • Article
    | Open Access

    River networks worldwide follow the emblematic Hack’s Law, which expresses the length of a stream as a function of its watershed area. Here the authors show this law does not depend on lithology or rainfall, but on the shape of watersheds and confirms the self-similarity of river networks.

    • Timothée Sassolas-Serrayet
    • , Rodolphe Cattin
    •  & Matthieu Ferry

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Lamprophyres represent hydrous alkaline mantle melts that are a unique source of information about the composition of continental lithosphere. Here the authors use isotopic compositions of lamprophyres to map a hidden terrain boundary and an unknown fragment of Armorica in the mantle lithosphere of southwest Britain.

    • Arjan H. Dijkstra
    •  & Callum Hatch

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The degree to which small and large earthquakes share the same rupture processes remains unknown. Here, the authors reveal earthquakes of magnitude 3–5 share almost identical growth processes shared, but while they are controlled by some characteristic structures, their final size remains unpredictable.

    • Takashi Okuda
    •  & Satoshi Ide

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Creeping serpentinite shear zones may host large earthquakes, but direct evidence of frictional heating and rupture have been missing. Here, the authors demonstrate via laboratory experiments that earthquake ruptures can propagate through serpentinite shear zones shown by high-temperature reaction products.

    • Matthew S. Tarling
    • , Steven A. F. Smith
    •  & James M. Scott

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Great megathrust earthquakes arise from the sudden release of strain accumulated during centuries of interseismic plate convergence. Here, the authors reconstruct interseismic strain accumulation since the 1960 Chile earthquake, finding a transient evolution at decadal scale with implications for estimating the probability of future events.

    • Daniel Melnick
    • , Shaoyang Li
    •  & Zhiguo Deng

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