Geology

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Writer Fuel: Scientists Discover Four Guant Seamounts, Thanks to Gravitational Anomalies

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The tallest of the newly discovered seamounts is more than 8,000 feet tall. (Image credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute)

Researchers have discovered four gigantic seamounts towering above the seafloor surrounding South America after detecting “gravitational anomalies” given off by the massive underwater mountains. The tallest rises more than 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) from the seafloor, making it three times taller than the world’s tallest building Scientists aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Falkor (too) research … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Could GPS Help Us Predict Earthquakes?

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road crumbled by an earthquake - deposit photos

Currently, it is impossible to accurately predict when and where an earthquake might strike. But scientists now believe that Global Positioning System (GPS) data could help spot early warning signs two hours before a big quake strikes. Earthquakes occur when the slabs of slow-moving rocks just under Earth’s surface — known as tectonic plates — … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Gigantic Lava Eruptions May Have Turned Earth into a Snowball 717 Million Years Ago

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ice planet - deposit photos

Devastating volcanic eruptions may have been so enormous they turned the planet into “Snowball Earth” 717 million years ago, a study has found. The volcanic outburst — one of the largest in Earth’s history — likely triggered a series of chemical reactions that sucked carbon dioxide (CO2) from Earth’s ancient atmosphere. The massive eruptions, which … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Is New York City Sinking Under Its Own Weight?

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New York City aerial view showing Central Park - Deposit Photos

The combined weight of New York City’s buildings may be causing the metropolis to sink, researchers have said. However, there may be other reasons why the city is sinking — including the way the earth continues to shift after the end of the last ice age more than 10,000 years ago, scientists added. Understanding how … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Radar Satellites Reveal 19,000 Volcanoes on the Ocean Floor

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Pao Pao Seamount in the South Pacific Ocean has been mapped by sonar, while thousands of other seamounts are just now being discovered by satellites. (Image credit: NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research)

High-definition radar satellites have revealed more than 19,000 undersea volcanoes around our planet, providing scientists with the most comprehensive catalog of seamounts ever created. The new compendium, which was published April 6 in the journal Earth and Space Science, could provide a better understanding of ocean currents, plate tectonics and climate change. Prior to this, … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Our Tectonic Plates Are Leaking

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Pythia's Oasis

Holes spewing warm fluids from the boundary between tectonic plates have been discovered at the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Oregon. Researchers think this strange, never-before-seen phenomenon, dubbed Pythia’s Oasis after an ancient Greek priestess, could provide insight into earthquake risk along the dangerous fault — although exactly how it affects the … Read more

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Writer Fuel: How Tall Could the Highest (Earth) Mountain Get?

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Evening view of Mount Everest from Kala Patthar - Deposit Photos

Sixty million years ago, when the Eurasian plate slammed into the Indian plate, a mountain range was born. Because these plates were of similar density, neither could sink below the other. The rocks had nowhere to go but up. Now, the Himalayas host Earth’s tallest mountains. Mount Everest is the tallest, towering 5.4 miles (8.8 … Read more

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Writer Fuel: How Big Could An Earthquake Be?

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earthquake - deposit photos

On May 22, 1960, a devastating earthquake hit southern Chile. For 10 minutes, the ground shook so violently that people were unable to stay on their feet. Cracks opened in roads, and buildings collapsed. One man, quoted in a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report (opens in new tab) about surviving the quake and its subsequent … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Geologically Speaking, Mars Isn’t As Dead As We Thought

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Olympus Mons, Mars - Deposit Photos

For decades, astronomers assumed that Mars was geodynamically dead — a planet without rumbling earthquakes and erupting volcanoes. Though remnants of towering volcanoes exist on the surface of the Red Planet today, these colossal structures have been dormant for millions of years. With little to no heat firing the planet’s engine, scientists reasoned, Mars became … Read more

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Writer Fuel: Paleontologists Find “Cooked Dragon” Fosils

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Cooked dragon fossil

Bizarre, mangled fossils in Ireland were likely deformed by superheated fluids that burst out from below Earth’s crust around 300 million years ago. The superhot fluids were released when the planet’s ancient continents collided together to form the supercontinent Pangaea, a new study shows. The fossils, which mainly consist of a group of amphibian-like tetrapods … Read more