Geology Archives

August 11, 2020August 11, 2020 by Evan Gough

Lava Tubes on the Moon and Mars are Really, Really Big. Big Enough to Fit an Entire Planetary Base

The first lava tube skylight discovered on the moon. Image credit: JAXA/SELENE

Could lava tubes on the Moon and Mars play a role in establishing a human presence on those worlds? Possibly, according to a team of researchers. Their new study shows that lunar and Martian lava tubes might be enormous, and easily large enough to accommodate a base.

July 24, 2020July 24, 2020 by Evan Gough

What Cracked the Earth’s Outer Shell and Started its Plate Tectonics?

A snapshot of a model from the new work, showing the late stages of growth and coalescence of a new global fracture network. Fractures are in black / shadow, and colors show stresses (pink color denotes tensile stress, blue color denotes compressive stress). Image Credit: Tang et al, 2020.

Earth’s lithosphere is made up of seven large tectonic plates and a number of smaller ones. The theory of plate tectonics that describes how these plates move is about 50 years old. But there’s never really been an understanding of how this system developed, and how the Earth’s shell split into separate plates and started moving.

Now a group of researchers have a possible explanation.

July 22, 2020July 22, 2020 by Evan Gough

It Looks Like There are Still Active Volcanoes on Venus

A radar image of Maat Mons on Venus, from the Magellan spacecraft. Image Credit: NASA/JPL

Venus’ surface is no stranger to volcanoes. Radar images show more than 1,000 volcanic structures on the planet. But for the most part, they appear to be ancient and inactive.

Now a new study says that Venus is still volcanically active, and has identified 37 volcanic structures that were recently active. If true, there’s more going on inside Venus than thought.

July 10, 2020July 10, 2020 by Brian Koberlein

Earth’s Magnetic Field is Changing Surprisingly Quickly

Visual simulation of the Earth's magnetic field. Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

If you’ve ever used a compass, you know that the magnetic needle always points North. Well, almost North. If you just happen to be out camping for the weekend, the difference doesn’t matter. For scientists studying the Earth’s interior, the difference is important. How Earth’s magnetic field changes over time give us clues about how our planet generates a magnetic field in the first place.

July 10, 2020July 10, 2020 by Evan Gough

Why Lava Tubes Should be Our Top Exploration Priority on Other Worlds

Spectacular high Sun view of the Mare Tranquillitatis pit crater revealing boulders on an otherwise smooth floor. The 100 meter pit may provide access to a lunar lava tube. Image Credit: By NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University - http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA13518, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=54853313

When magma comes out of the Earth onto the surface, it flows as lava. Those lava flows are fascinating to watch, and they leave behind some unique landforms and rocks. But a lot of what’s fascinating about these flows can be hidden underground, as lava tubes.

These lava tubes are turning out to be a very desirable target for exploration on other worlds, just as they are here on Earth.

July 9, 2020July 9, 2020 by Evan Gough

That Strange Gel-Like Material Discovered by China’s Lunar Rover? It’s Just Rock

China's Yutu-2 lunar rover discovered this strange-looking substance on the far side of the Moon. Image Credit: CNSA/CLEP

In January 2019, China landed its Chang’e 4 mission on the Moon’s far side. The Yutu-2 rover got busy exploring its surroundings. It’s still going, even though the rover’s nominal operating mission was only three months.

Among the mission’s findings was a strange material described as “gel-like.” Now an analysis of the material has revealed that it’s just rock: impact melt breccia.

July 2, 2020July 2, 2020 by Evan Gough

It Was Almost Certainly an Asteroid Impact that Wiped Out the Dinosaurs. In Fact, Volcanoes Might Have Helped Life Recover

An ankylosaurus enjoying a drink of water while the asteroid strikes in the distance. Image Credit: Fabio Manucci

It seems almost certain that an asteroid impact wiped out the dinosaurs. But only almost. Another competing theory won’t completely go away: the extinction-by-volcano theory.

A new study from the UK piles more evidence on the asteroid side of the debate, while adding a new volcanic twist. These researchers say that volcanic activity actually helped life recover from the asteroid strike.

June 29, 2020June 29, 2020 by Evan Gough

Deep Down in Ocean Worlds, it’s Difficult to Tell Where the Oceans End and the Rock Begins

This artist’s concept shows a hypothetical planet covered in water around the binary star system of Kepler-35A and B. The composition of such water worlds has fascinated astronomers and astrophysicists for years. (Image by NASA/JPL-Caltech.)

We all know what water is. And what rock is. The difference is crystal clear. Well, here on Earth it is.

But on other worlds? The difference might not be so clear.

June 26, 2020June 26, 2020 by Evan Gough

Do We Now Understand Why the Moon’s Near and Far Sides Look So Dramatically Different?

We intend to explore the Moon, use its resources, and use it as a jumping-off point for missions deeper into the Solar System. For that we need a Lunar GPS. Image Credit: NASA

The Moon is easily the most well-studied object in the Solar System, (other than Earth, of course.) But it still holds some puzzles for scientists. Why, for instance, is one side of the Moon so different from the other?

June 3, 2020 by Paul M. Sutter

The dinosaur killing asteroid hit the Earth at the most devastating possible angle

Impactors strike during the reign of the dinosaurs (image credit: MasPix/devianart)

There are bad days, and then there are really bad days. 65 million years ago, life on Earth – especially if you were a dinosaur – experienced the worst possible bad day, as a giant meteor came crashing down to the surface of our planet, unleashing an inferno followed by decades of nuclear winter. And the worst part? It didn’t have to be so bad.