News

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...

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...

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...

Minerals present in the Venusian atmosphere could explain the colour and splotchiness of the planet’s clouds in the UV range say Cambridge researchers, solving a long-standing mystery. Scientists know that Venus' clouds are mainly composed of sulfuric acid droplets with some water, chlorine, and iron — a mix that varies...