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A recent study, led by Dr Aleksej Popel and directed by Professor Ian Farnan, both at the Department of Earth Sciences and Cambridge Nuclear Energy Centre, has observed the surface breakdown of uranium dioxide, the primary component of nuclear fuel, shedding light on the mechanism and rate of waste leaching.

An international study, involving Professor Eric Wolff at the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, has found that the onset of past climate changes was synchronous over an area extending from the Arctic to the low latitudes.

This post is a response on behalf of the Department of Earth Sciences to an open letter sent by undergraduates, postgraduates and post-docs prompted by the current vocalisation around racial injustice, and in particular the Black Lives Matter movement. The letter raises concerns about the Department and wider Earth science sector’s track records on diversity and inclusion, and urges a substantial and comprehensive shift in the approaches taken to addressing this. To date, more than 120 people have signed the letter.

Zircons, and their microscopic mineral inclusions, from an ancient outcrop of Jack Hills, Western Australia, have been at the centre of an intense geological debate: When did the Earth first create a magnetic field? Previous studies have suggested that these minerals record traces of Earth’s magnetic field dated as far back as 4.2 billion years ago (Ga). However, an international team led by MIT, and including Professor Richard Harrison (Dept of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge), has now found evidence to the contrary.