The way Earth’s surface moves has a bigger impact on shifting the climate than we knew

Our planet has experienced dramatic climate shifts throughout its history, oscillating between freezing “icehouse” periods and warm “greenhouse” states. Scientists have long linked these climate changes to fluctuations in atmospheric carbon dioxide. However, new research reveals the source of this carbon – and the driving forces behind it – are far more complex than previously … Read more…

The Conversation: Witness 1.8 billion years of tectonic plates dance across Earth’s surface in a new animation

Two tectonic plates meet in Thingvellir National Park, Iceland. VisualProduction/Shutterstock Alan Collins, Univ of Adelaide Using information from inside the rocks on Earth’s surface, we have reconstructed the plate tectonics of the planet over the last 1.8 billion years. It is the first time Earth’s geological record has been used like this, looking so far back … Read more…