The study of Earth’s systems, including its physical structure, natural processes, and interactions between the lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. Earth sciences investigate phenomena such as weather, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions to understand our planet’s past, present, and future.
Solar radiation storms are extreme space weather phenomena in which high-energy particles from the Sun reach near-Earth space, posing operational risks to satellites and aviation. The latest rare S4 – Severe event on January 19, 2026, is the strongest since 2003, providing an opportunity to explain what solar radiation storms are and why scientists monitor them from Earth’s orbit to surface detectors.
A large earthquake swarm along the Scotia–Antarctica plate boundary between August 2020 and August 2021 was driven primarily by magma intrusion beneath the Bransfield Strait, according to a geodetic study published in Geophysical Journal International on December 13, 2025.
A new seismic study shows that swarms of tiny, low-frequency earthquakes beneath the Mendocino Triple Junction off Northern California reveal a previously unrecognized configuration of hidden faults and slab fragments, according to research published on January 15, 2026.
Researchers revealed that the Main Marmara fault in northwestern Türkiye has been rupturing progressively eastward for more than a decade, culminating into the strongest earthquake in over 60 years beneath the Sea of Marmara, a MW 6.2 quake on April 23, 2025. New findings raise concern that a locked fault segment south of Istanbul could generate a M7.0 earthquake in the future, rattling the city of 18 million people.
A global analysis of satellite gravity data shows that El Niño and La Niña have been the dominant drivers of drought and flood extremes worldwide over the past two decades, synchronizing wet and dry conditions across continents.
Direct observations from two Chinese megacities show that urban air holds vast numbers of microplastic and nanoplastic particles, placing the atmosphere at the center of the global plastic cycle rather than its margins.
A second fragment of the Al Khor meteorite was recovered in northern Qatar after a four-month search effort, with the discovery announced on January 11, 2026. The find was confirmed by Sheikh Salman bin Jabor al-Thani, head of the Qatar Astronomical Centre, who announced the recovery on his X account.
They were supposed to be some of the cleanest places on Earth — yet inside NASA’s spacecraft assembly cleanrooms, scientists have discovered 26 previously unknown bacterial species, organisms that not only survived extreme sterilization protocols but also carry genetic traits that could help them endure the harsh conditions of space.
Ancient rocks exposed in southern Africa show that Earth already had oceans, intense volcanism, strong earthquakes, and microbial life more than 3.2 billion years ago. Preserved in the Makhonjwa Mountains of South Africa and Eswatini, these formations provide one of the clearest geological records of early Earth surface conditions.
Before dawn, while most of central Mexico sleeps, a small group of scientists climbs the dark slopes of Popocatépetl, one of the country’s most active volcanoes. Their goal is to recover seismic instruments that, after five years of continuous monitoring, have allowed researchers to construct the first complete three-dimensional image of the volcano’s interior. The model reveals multiple zones where magma accumulates beneath the crater, extending to depths of about 18 km (11 miles), and offers new insight into how Popocatépetl functions and how its eruptions may develop.
