Category: Plate Tectonics / EQs

Don’t Call It a Supervolcano

8/13/2021

Scientists dismantle the myths of Yellowstone: Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first and arguably most famous national park, is home to one of the planet’s largest and potentially most destructive volcanoes. The 50- by 70-kilometer Yellowstone caldera complex is so massive that it can really be appreciated only from the air. But although the caldera isn’t always visible on the ground, it’s certainly no secret: Copious thermal features like hot springs and geyser basins dot the landscape and have attracted people to the uniquely beautiful and ecologically rich area for at least 11,000 years. - EOS

Right - The movement of the North American tectonic plate over the Yellowstone hot spot has created a trail of volcanic activity across southern Idaho into Wyoming over the past 16.5 million years. Credit: USGS. Click image for larger version.

Fossil Fuel Pollution Causes 1 in 5 Premature Deaths Globally

2/9/2021

Pollution from fossil fuels causes one in five premature deaths globally, suggesting the health impacts of burning coal, oil and natural gas may be far higher than previously thought, Parts of China, India, Europe and the northeastern United States are among the hardest-hit areas, suffering a disproportionately high share of 8.7 million annual deaths attributed to fossil fuels, the study published in the journal Environmental Research found. The new research gives the most detailed assessment of premature deaths due to fossil-fuel air pollution to date. Another study in 2017 had put the annual number of deaths from all outdoor airborne particulate matter — including dust and smoke from agricultural burns and wildfires — at 4.2 million. - Reuters

Geologists Raise the Speed Limit for How Fast Continental Crust can Form

10/9/2020

Scientists have thought that the Earth's mountain ranges are formed through this process over many millions of years. But MIT geologists have now found that the planet can generate new land far more quickly than previously thought. In a paper published in the journal Geology, the team shows that parts of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California rose up surprisingly fast, over a period of just 1.39 million years—more than twice as fast as expected for the region. The researchers attribute the rapid formation of land to a massive flare-up of magma.- Phys.Org

Don’t Call It a Supervolcano

Fossil Fuel Pollution Causes 1 in 5 Premature Deaths Globally

Geologists Raise the Speed Limit for How Fast Continental Crust can Form

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