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.
New 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations show that Earth’s magnetic field has, for billions of years, funneled charged atmospheric particles toward the Moon through the planet’s magnetotail, gradually embedding traces of terrestrial gases into lunar soil. The findings, published in Nature Communications Earth and Environment, suggest that the lunar regolith holds a geochemical record of Earth’s evolving atmosphere.
An offshore M7.2 earthquake known as the Grand Banks earthquake or the Laurentian Slope earthquake and sometimes the South Shore Disaster struck south of Newfoundland on November 18, 1929 at 17:02 p.m. local time (LT), . The shaking triggered a massive 200 km³ (48 miles³) submarine slump that ruptured 12 trans-Atlantic cables and generated a tsunami that devastated more than 40 villages on the Burin Peninsula, killing 28 people.
Tectonic earthquakes come from fault slips deep within the crust, while volcanic earthquakes form as magma and gas shift under a volcano. Agencies such as the USGS use signal shape, depth, and frequency to tell them apart, guiding both seismic hazard and eruption forecasting.
Teleconnections are patterns in the atmosphere and oceans that link weather and climate anomalies across long distances, allowing conditions in one region, including the Pacific Ocean, to influence rainfall and temperature patterns elsewhere.
An Alberta Clipper is a compact and fast moving winter cyclone that forms east of the Canadian Rockies and races across the northern United States and southern Canada, often bringing sharp temperature drops, strong winds, and brief but disruptive snowfall.
New geodetic measurements along an 800 km (500 miles) section of the Himalayas indicate that seven centuries of accumulated strain may be enough to produce two M8.8 earthquakes, according to a study published recently in Geophysical Research Letters.
Scientists at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) have identified a previously unknown tectonic regime, the “episodic-squishy lid”, redefining how terrestrial planets evolve and offering new insights into the tectonic histories of Earth and Venus.
Earthquake swarms are sequences of many small to moderate earthquakes that cluster in time and space without producing a single defining mainshock. Their unusual patterns reveal how stress, fluids and magma shift through the crust, offering one of the clearest signals that the Earth is actively reshaping itself beneath our feet.
Short, high-frequency seismic signals recorded between 2020 and 2023 beneath Cascade Glacier in Alaska’s Barry Arm display a recurring seasonal cycle that may reflect freeze-thaw cracking in subsurface rock. The study, published on December 2, 2025, in Seismological Research Letters, provides new insight into processes that influence one of the most dangerous landslide hazards in the United States.
Lahars are rapid volcanic mudflows capable of traveling tens of kilometers down valleys with little warning, moving at speeds of up to 65 km/h (40 mph) and carrying trees, boulders, and buildings. They form when water mixes with volcanic ash and rock during eruptions, heavy rainfall, or crater-lake breaches, creating a dense flow that can bury settlements, reshape river systems, and alter landscapes long after volcanic activity ends.
