Tag: Solid Earth Tectonic Processes
February 20, 2017
Experiments Call Origin of Earth’s Iron into Question
New research from The University of Texas at Austin reveals that the Earth’s unique iron composition isn’t linked to the formation of the planet’s core,…
Read MoreFebruary 7, 2017
Only the Hottest, Most Buoyant Mantle Plumes Draw from a Primordial Reservoir Deep in the Earth
The Earth’s mantle—the layer between the crust and the outer core—is home to a primordial soup even older than the moon. Among the main ingredients…
Read MoreDecember 13, 2016
Breakup of Supercontinent Pangea Cooled Mantle and Thinned Crust
The oceanic crust produced by the Earth today is significantly thinner than crust made 170 million years ago during the time of the supercontinent…
Read MoreNovember 17, 2016
Dino-Killing Asteroid Made Rocks Behave like Liquid and Could Have Provided Habitat for New Life
A study of the massive crater that formed when an asteroid crashed into Earth 66 million years ago, wiping out all nonavian dinosaurs and most…
Read MoreMay 18, 2016
Humans have been causing earthquakes in Texas since the 1920s
Earthquakes triggered by human activity have been happening in Texas since at least 1925, and they have been widespread throughout the state ever since, according…
Read MoreMay 5, 2016
World’s Shallowest Slow-Motion Earthquakes Detected Off New Zealand’s Coast
Research published in the May 6 edition of Science indicates that slow-motion earthquakes or “slow-slip events” can rupture the shallow portion of a fault that…
Read MoreApril 21, 2016
Volcanoes Tied to Shifts in Earth’s Climate over Millions of Years
A new study in the April 22 edition of Science reveals that volcanic activity associated with the plate-tectonic movement of continents may be responsible for…
Read MoreApril 13, 2016
Earthquake may have been manmade, but more data needed to assess hazards in Texas
The most comprehensive analysis to date of a series of earthquakes that included a 4.8 magnitude event in East Texas in 2012 has found it…
Read MoreSeptember 28, 2015
Scientists Simulate Earth’s Middle Crust to Understand Earthquakes
Researchers have for the first time been able to measure a material’s resistance to fracturing from various types of tectonic motions in the Earth’s middle…
Read MoreJune 22, 2015
Seeking Earthquake Answers, TexNet Seismic Monitoring Program Authorized by the State of Texas
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has signed legislation authorizing funding of $4.47 million for the TexNet Seismic Monitoring Program, an initiative led by the Bureau of…
Read More