Scientists have uncovered the oldest direct evidence yet that Earth’s tectonic plates were on the move 3.5 billion years ago. By analyzing magnetic fingerprints in ancient rocks, they reconstructed ...

Latitude shapes climate in a basic but powerful way. It controls the angle of sunlight, which helps decide whether a place tends toward ice, desert, rainforest, or something in between. That simple ...

Scientists have discovered a new layer of partly molten rock under the Earth's crust that might help settle a long-standing debate about how tectonic plates move. The molten layer is located about 100 ...

For hundreds of millions of years, Earth's climate has warmed and cooled with natural fluctuations in the level of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere. Over the past century, humans have pushed CO₂ ...

The Mendocino Triple Junction is the meeting point of three tectonic plates. Using data from tiny earthquakes, researchers at USGS, UC Davis and CU Boulder propose a new model for this seismic zone.

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 ...

For hundreds of millions of years, Earth’s climate has warmed and cooled with natural fluctuations in the level of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the atmosphere. Over the past century, humans have pushed CO₂ ...

New research reveals the source of this carbon – and the driving forces behind it – are far more complex than previously thought. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate ...

The Mendocino Triple Junction off the coast of Northern California is the point where three tectonic plates meet. A new study reveals at least five moving pieces deep below the Earth's surface make up ...