geology

Geology News
Historical Geology Current Events


Dinosaur Decline in the Late Cretaceous
May 2, 2012 | USAToday.com

Researchers have determined that some dinosaur sub-groups were in decline long before the Late Cretaceous impact event.

Oldest Worm Burrows
April 23, 2012 | ScienceNews.org

The oldest worm burrow trace fossils have been found in shallow marine rocks that are 550 million years old in central Siberia.

The Beginning of Plate Tectonics
April 18, 2012 | ScienceNews

An article on the ScienceNews website titled “Stop-and-go plate tectonics” explores how the process of plate tectonics might have started on the early Earth.

Tambora: April 10, 2012
April 10, 2012 | Scientific American

“On April 10, 1815, Tambora Volcano produced the largest eruption in recorded history. [...] Enough ash was put into the atmosphere from the April 10 eruption to reduce incident sunlight on the Earth’s surface, causing global cooling, which resulted in the 1816 “year without a summer.” Quote from a NASA Earth Observatory press release.

Teeth As a Competitive Edge
April 4, 2012 | University of Washington

“Conventional wisdom holds that during the Mesozoic Era, mammals were small creatures that held on at life’s edges. But at least one mammal group, rodent-like creatures called multituberculates, actually flourished during the last 20 million years of the dinosaurs’ reign and survived their extinction 66 million years ago.” Quoted from the University of Washington press release.

Titanoboa: Largest Snake in Earth History
April 2, 2012 | Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History has a new documentary and traveling exhibition titled “Titanoboa: Monster Snake”. The largest known snake lived about 60 million years ago in what is now Colombia, weighed over one ton and grew to a length of up to 48 feet.

Image by Charles Lyell
Fossils on the Lake Erie Shoreline
March 28, 2012 | Magma Cum Laude

Jessica Ball has some photos of a recent fossil collecting trip along the shoreline of Lake Erie. They found some nice corals, trilobites and brachiopods.

Horse Evolution and Climate Change
March 13, 2012 | National Science Foundation

“When Sifrhippus sandae, the earliest known horse, first appeared in the forests of North America more than 50 million years ago, it would not have been mistaken for a Clydesdale. It weighed in at around 12 pounds–and it was destined to get much smaller over the ensuing millennia.” Quoted from the NSF press release.

The Great Oxygenation Event
March 13, 2012 | Rutgers University

“Atmospheric oxygen really took off on our planet about 2.4 billion years ago during the Great Oxygenation Event.” Quoted from the Rutgers press release.

Ancient Seawater in Earth’s Mantle
March 1, 2012 | Carnegie Institution for Science

“By analyzing submarine volcanic glass from the Manus Basin, scientists found unexpected changes in hydrogen and boron isotopes from the deep mantle.”

Animal Evolution During the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum
February 27, 2012 | National Science Foundation

Fifty-five million years ago, Earth underwent a very rapid global warming event. About a third of mammal species responded with a significant reduction in size during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum , some by as much as one-half.

The Collision that Created Earth’s Moon
February 27, 2012 | University of Maryland

“Unexpected new findings by a University of Maryland team of geochemists show that some portions of the Earth’s mantle (the rocky layer between Earth’s metallic core and crust) formed when the planet was much smaller than it is now.” Quoted from the University of Maryland press release.

300MYA Coal Swamp Buried in Ash
February 22, 2012 | Nature.com

In northern China, researchers have found a fossil coal swamp that was quickly buried and preserved by a fall of volcanic ash approximately 300 million years ago.

Related: How does coal form? | Coal through a microscope.

Roadside Geology of Yellowstone Country
February 21, 2012 | Geology.com Store

William Fritz and Robert Thomas have completed a second edition of the popular Roadside Geology of Yellowstone Country. This 6″x9″ paperback has 311 pages that are packed with detailed information about Yellowstone Geology.

Mass Extinction Can Be a Slow Event
February 7, 2012 | National Science Foundation

The deadliest mass extinction of all took a long time to kill 90 percent of Earth’s marine life–and it killed in stages–according to a newly published report.

Image by Charles Lyell
Forgotten Darwin Fossils Rediscovered
January 17, 2012 | USA Today

A collection of over 300 specimens collected by Charles Darwin and his associates – then forgotten for generations has be rediscovered at the British Geological Survey.

Google Doodle for Nicolas Steno
January 11, 2012 | Google

Every day Google celebrates a famous person or event and today they honor Nicolas Steno, one of the early pioneers of geology. The doodle features rock layers spelling GOOGLE and when they are clicked it does a google search for “Nicolas Steno”. Check it out, it will be gone tomorrow.

Ichthyosaur Survival across the Jurassic–Cretaceous Boundary
January 6, 2012 | PLoSone

The PLoSone online journal has an article about Acamptonectes densus, an ichthyosaur that survived the Jurasic-Cretaceous extinction event and suggests that the event had little impact on ichthyosaurs.

Birth of the Modern Colorado River
December 28, 2011 | Arizona Geology Magazine

An interesting article in the current issue of Arizona Geology Magazine is: “4.8 MA Age for Inception of the Modern Colorado River” by John Spencer.

Grand Canyon Trail of Time Wins Award
December 22, 2011 | Arizona Geology

The Trail of Time at Grand Canyon National Park won the Wayside Media Award from the National Association for Interpretation.

New Ideas for the Origin of Atmospheric Oxygen
December 16, 2011 | Penn State Live

“The appearance of oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere probably did not occur as a single event, but as a long series of starts and stops, according to an international team of researchers who investigated rock cores from the FAR DEEP project.” Quoted from the Penn State press release.

North America’s Largest Dinosaur
December 8, 2011 | MSNBC

Based upon the proportions of two vertebrae and a femur of Alamosaurus sanjuanensis found in New Mexico, researchers believe that the bones are from the largest dinosaur ever found in North America.

National Park Service Image
Florida Mastodon
December 1, 2011 | CNN Video

Workers at a construction site in Florida discovered a mastodon skeleton that is now being excavated for the Datona Beach Museum of Arts and Sciences.

Earth is Overdue for a Magnetic Reversal
November 30, 2011 | NASA

NASA has a new article that explains that over the past 20 million years magnetic reversals have occurred every 200,000 to 300,000 years but it has been more than twice that long since the last reversal.

How Old is Earth’s Inner Core?
November 21, 2011 | Michigan Tech

Researchers at Michigan Tech, the University of Rochester and Yale University have determined that Earth’s core could be at least 1.2 billion years older than previously thought.

Earth During the Permian Extinction
November 17, 2011 | SignOnSanDiego.com

An article on the SignOnSanDiego.com website explains what Earth might have been like during the extinction that occurred at the end of the Permian which wiped out most of Earth’s species.

Humans in Europe 45,000 Years Ago?
November 2, 2011 | CNN

Researchers in southern Italy have found teeth associated with shell beads and other ornaments that date to between 43,000 and 45,000 years ago. These are older than any other physical remains found anywhere in Europe.

Previously Unpublished Photos from Scott’s 1910-1913 Expedition to the South Pole
October 20, 2011 | New York Times

David M. Wilson, a polar historian, has published a collection of images with descriptions from Robert Falcon Scott’s 1910-1913 Terra Nova Expedition to the South Pole. The New York Times has a photo gallery featuring some of the images.

Spectacular Fossils of the Green River Formation
October 17, 2011 | Geology.com

Some of the most spectacular Eocene fossils are found in the Green River Formation of Colorado, Utah and Wyoming where fish, insects, plants and animals were preserved in intermountain lakes while the Rocky Mountains were still growing.

Lake Agassiz Disappearance and Future Climate Clues
October 11, 2011 | University of Cincinnati

“Although Lake Agassiz is gone, questions about its origin and disappearance remain. Answers to those questions may provide clues to our future climate.” Quoted from the University of Cincinnati news release.

Arkansas Dinosaur Tracks
October 10, 2011 | University of Arkansas

“The track site, found in southwest Arkansas, covers an area of about two football fields and contains the fossilized tracks of several species.” Quoted from the University of Arkansas news release.

What Caused Higher Carbon Dioxide Levels at the End of the Last Ice Age?
October 4, 2011 | University of Michigan

“Scientists believe that the additional carbon dioxide played a key role in warming the planet and melting the continental ice sheets. They have long hypothesized that the source of the gas was the deep ocean.” Quoted from the University of Michigan news release.

Student Learning: Feathers in Amber
October 3, 2011 | SciNEWS

The SciNEWS website has a new collection of resources that guide teachers in preparing learning activities for students that feature new research findings about some of the oldest-know feathers. These are based in part on an assemblage of Late Cretaceous dinosaur and bird feathers discovered in Canadian amber.

Climate Record In Cave Stalagmites
September 30, 2011 | University of Alabama

“A 10,000-year-old weather report? Come on. That’s going a tad deep into the archives, isn’t it? Yet, that’s the untold story that caves on a South Pacific island are expected to reveal to a group of University of Alabama geologists.” Quoted from the University of Alabama research news.

Spectacular Colors in Ancient Beetles?
September 30, 2011 | BBC

BBC has a report on a Yale University scientist and her discoveries on the original colors of fossilized beetles.

Climate Fluctuations and Human Evolution?
September 28, 2011 | University of Liverpool

“Research at the University of Liverpool has found that periods of rapid fluctuation in temperature coincided with the emergence of the first distant relatives of human beings and the appearance and spread of stone tools.” Quoted from the University of Liverpool news release.

The Origin of Gases in Earth’s Interior
September 28, 2011 | The University of Melbourne

“An international team of scientists has provided new insights into the processes behind the evolution of the planet by demonstrating how salty water and gases transfer from the atmosphere into the Earth’s interior.” Quoted form the University of Melborne news release.

Armored Dinosaur Hatchling Discovered in Maryland
September 28, 2011 | Johns Hopkins

“Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine with help from an amateur fossil hunter in College Park, Maryland, have described the fossil of an armored dinosaur hatchling.” Quoted from John Hopkins news release.

Did a Baptistina-Family Asteroid Kill the Dinosaurs?
September 23, 2011 | NASA

“Observations from NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission indicate the family of asteroids some believed was responsible for the demise of the dinosaurs is not likely the culprit.” Quoted from the NASA press release.

Using DNA to Fill Gaps in the Fossil Record
September 21, 2011 | University of Pennsylvania

“University of Pennsylvania evolutionary biologists have resolved a long-standing paleontological problem by reconciling the fossil record of species diversity with modern DNA samples.” Quoted from the University of Pennsylvania press release.

Feather
Feathers in Amber
September 16, 2011 | University of Alberta

Secrets from the age of the dinosaurs are usually revealed by fossilized bones, but a University of Alberta research team has turned up a treasure trove of late Cretaceous feathers, which have been discovered trapped in tree resin.

Abundant Iron in Earth’s Ancient Oceans
September 13, 2011 | National Science Foundation

“Now a new study, led by researchers at the University of California, Riverside, reveals that the ancient deep ocean was not only devoid of oxygen but also rich in iron, a key biological nutrient for nearly a billion years longer than previously thought–right through a key evolutionary interval that culminated in the first rise of animals.” Quoted from the National Science Foundation news release.

New Coral Dating Method and Future Sea-Level Changes
September 12, 2011 | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

“New evidence of sea-level oscillations during a warm period that started about 125,000 years ago raises the possibility of a similar scenario if the planet continues its more recent warming trend, says a research team led by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.” Quoted from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution press release.

Did Life Begin on a Pumice Raft?
September 6, 2011 | University of Oxford

“Floating rafts of volcanic pumice could have played a significant role in the origins of life on Earth, scientists from Oxford University and the University of Western Australia have suggested.” Quoted from the University of Oxford news release.

Rapid Evolution Often Doesn’t Last Within a Species
August 29, 2011 | Oregon State University

“In research that will help address a long-running debate and apparent contradiction between short- and long-term evolutionary change, scientists have discovered that although evolution is a constant and sometimes rapid process, the changes that hit and stick tend to take a long time.” Quoted from the Oregon State University news release.

Fossil Discovery Provides New Information about Early Mammal Evolution
August 28, 2011 | National Science Foundation

“A well-preserved fossil discovered in northeast China provides new information about the earliest ancestors of most of today’s mammal species–the placental mammals.” Quoted form the National Science Foundation press release.

Ancient Daddy Long Leg Fossils in 3-D
August 25, 2011 | Imperial College London

“Two ancient types of harvestmen, or ‘daddy long legs,’ which skittered around forests more than 300 million years ago, are revealed in new three-dimensional virtual fossil models published today in the journal Nature Communications.” Quoted from the Imperial College London news release.

Related: Fossil “Spiders” Clearly Revealed by 3D Imaging

Oldest Microfossils Found in Australia?
August 21, 2011 | Washington Post

Researchers in Australia have found microscopic fossils of what are thought to be 3.4 billion-year-old anaerobic bacteria. Analysis of nearby pyrite grains show evidence of metabolism that implies that the microbes were processing sulfur.

Texas Mountains Hold Clues to Ancient Sea Levels
August 18, 2011 | MSNBC

The Guadalupe Mountains of West Texas hold clues about sea level changes that occurred over 265 million years ago.

How Old is the Moon?
August 17, 2011 | Los Angeles Times

A new study described in the online journal Nature used isotopic dating techniques to revise the age of a class of lunar rocks known as ferroan anorthosite. They suggest that the moon might have formed about 200 million years later than previously believed.

Every day you can find links to several earth science news topics right here. Bookmark this page and visit often. You can also receive our news for free by RSS feed or in a daily email message.

Custom Topo Maps


marcellus shale gasMarcellus Shale: The most overlooked resource in the eastern United States!
Diamond formationDiamonds from Coal? Diamonds form under a variety of conditions that rarely involve coal as a source of carbon.
Mineral RightsMineral Rights / Oil & Gas: Who owns the minerals under your land? Have they been sold? Can someone mine without permission?
uses of gold The Many Uses of Gold: Learn how the unique properties of gold make it extremely suited for a large number of industrial uses.
download google earth Download Google Earth Free! High resolution 3D satellite views of Earth. Download it Free.
meteorites Meteorites: Learn about meteorites from meteorite hunter, Geoffrey Notkin. What are meteorites? irons, stones, stony-irons.

News content contributed by
© 2005-2011 Geology.com. All Rights Reserved.
Images, code and content of this website are property of Geology.com. Use without permission is prohibited. Pages on this site are protected by Copyscape.