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Department of Earth Sciences

 
Read more at: Crystal defects yield improved estimates of earthquake energy balance

Crystal defects yield improved estimates of earthquake energy balance

12 March 2024

Earthquakes happen when rocks deep underground break and slide past each other suddenly: releasing seismic waves that cause shaking. But shaking is just one way that earthquakes liberate their pent-up energy. Around 80% of an earthquake’s total energy actually stays within rocks close to the fault rupture. When a fault...


Read more at: Earth’s earliest forest revealed in Somerset fossils

Earth’s earliest forest revealed in Somerset fossils

8 March 2024

The oldest fossilised forest known on Earth – dating from 390 million years ago – has been found in the high sandstone cliffs along the Devon and Somerset coast of South West England. The fossils, discovered and identified by researchers from the Universities of Cambridge and Cardiff, are the oldest fossilised trees ever...


Read more at: Professor Sasha Turchyn receives Pilkington Prize for teaching excellence
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Professor Sasha Turchyn receives Pilkington Prize for teaching excellence

7 March 2024

Professor Sasha Turchyn has been awarded the prestigious Pilkington Prize in recognition of her teaching excellence. Professor Sasha Turchyn is a lecturer in biogeochemistry and Director of Studies in Earth Sciences at Trinity Hall. The award acknowledged Sasha’s dedication to students, running fieldtrips and her work to...


Read more at: Join us as we celebrate International Women's Day!

Join us as we celebrate International Women's Day!

29 February 2024

Join us as we celebrate International Women’s Day, this Friday 8 th March! The Department’s EDI Committee is hosting a panel discussion featuring five inspiring female earth scientists working in wide-ranging fields. The panel speakers will share their experience and reflections: from career paths, to role models and...


Read more at: Deep ocean structures revealed via seismic imaging

Deep ocean structures revealed via seismic imaging

27 February 2024

In the southwestern Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Brazil, warm tropical waters flow southward and meet colder currents travelling north from the sub-Antarctic region. At this point, two significant water masses of contrasting temperature and salinity converge: forming a swirling, turbulent zone known as the Brazil-...


Read more at: New state-of-the-art X-ray diffractometer installed

New state-of-the-art X-ray diffractometer installed

19 February 2024

A new X-ray diffractometer has been installed in the Department’s microanalysis laboratory. X-ray diffraction (XRD) is a key scientific technique for determining the crystal structure of natural and human-made samples. The upgrade allows for faster sample analysis — facilitating a wide range of new experiments, including...


Read more at: Professor Helen Williams elected as Geochemistry Fellow
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Professor Helen Williams elected as Geochemistry Fellow

14 February 2024

Congratulations to Professor Helen Williams on being elected a Geochemistry Fellow of the European Association of Geochemistry and The Geochemical Society. The Geochemical Society and the European Association of Geochemistry established the honorary title of Geochemistry Fellow to be bestowed upon outstanding scientists...


Read more at: Ice cores provide first documentation of rapid Antarctic ice loss in the past

Ice cores provide first documentation of rapid Antarctic ice loss in the past

8 February 2024

Researchers from the University of Cambridge and the British Antarctic Survey have uncovered the first direct evidence that the West Antarctic Ice Sheet shrunk suddenly and dramatically at the end of the Last Ice Age, around eight thousand years ago. The evidence, contained within an ice core, shows that in one location...


Read more at: Ancient seafloor vents spewed tiny, life-giving minerals into Earth’s early oceans

Ancient seafloor vents spewed tiny, life-giving minerals into Earth’s early oceans

29 January 2024

Researchers from the universities of Western Australia and Cambridge have uncovered the importance of hydrothermal vents, similar to modern day black smokers, in supplying minerals that may have been a key ingredient in the emergence of early life. The study, published in Science Advances , examined 3.5-billion-year-old...


Read more at: Climate change induced heavy rainfall could harm sea urchins

Climate change induced heavy rainfall could harm sea urchins

17 January 2024

As our climate warms Britain’s weather is becoming ever more extreme: with heatwaves and heavy rainfall events increasingly frequent and severe. In Scotland, winter precipitation has increased by 20% since the 1960s, and this upward trend looks set to intensify. A group of scientists from the University of Cambridge and...