Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Earth Sciences
Estimation of Near-Surface Density using Vertical Gravity Gradients in Central and Western Japan
Published: 2026-01-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences
The Vertical Gravity Gradient (VGG), derived from the difference between terrestrial and airborne gravity data, highlights shallow density contrasts. We estimated the near-surface density structure of Central and Western Japan using VGGs derived from terrestrial data within 3 km of airborne flight lines. We constructed an inversion model on a 1/7-degree grid to estimate surface density and a [...]
Multi-level geothermal analysis of urban heat-in-place: a Leeds case study
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
As cities across the UK seek to decarbonise heat and achieve net-zero targets, shallow geothermal energy presents an underutilised yet promising resource. In this study, we evaluate the geothermal potential of the upper 1,000 m of the subsurface beneath Leeds, a major urban centre underlain by Carboniferous sandstone aquifers and abandoned coal mine workings. Using geological maps and legacy [...]
Magmatic degassing as the primary source of salt in Archean oceans
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The salinification of Earth’s early oceans impacted both the climate and the evolution of life. However, available halogen data of Archean seawater samples are at apparent odds with a conventionally assumed mantle origin of sea salt, highlighting a critical lack of mechanistic understanding of how the Archean oceans became salty. Here, we present new triple halogen (Cl-Br-I) data from high [...]
Petrological insights into magma storage and evolution at Rabaul Caldera, Papua New Guinea
Published: 2026-01-21
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Volcanology
Rabaul is a caldera volcano in Papua New Guinea. Its most recent caldera-forming eruption occurred ~1400 years ago, with numerous intra-caldera eruptions since. Erupted whole rock compositions are commonly attributed to fractional crystallisation along a single liquid line of descent, but mafic mineral clots indicate mafic recharge and magma mixing also influence whole rock compositions. [...]
A detailed picture of Haiti’s seismicity given by deep learning and template matching
Published: 2026-01-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Haiti regularly experiences destructive earthquakes, but seismic monitoring in the region has historically been limited. Recent deployments of citizen-hosted RaspberryShake seismometers and temporary seismic deployment following the 2021 Mw 7.2 earthquake provide new data to study the region’s seismotectonics. However, high noise levels at many stations, in particular the RaspberryShake ones, [...]
Is manganese the key? Lowering the dolomite kinetic barrier via redox-driven templating
Published: 2026-01-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Sciences
Fabric-preserving and strata-bound dolostones in deep-time successions defy high temperature burial models, implying an elusive low-temperature, syndepositional formation pathway. Here, we demonstrate a kinetically facile route to disordered dolomite nucleation driven by the synergy of manganese redox cycling and carboxyl functionalization. Using a bio-inspired electrochemical reactor, we show [...]
Last Interglacial shoreline successions in southeastern Australia: A framework for identifying a waning mantle plume, neotectonic movements and sea-level change
Published: 2026-01-18
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Tectonics and Structure
Relict shoreline successions are critically important for investigations of recent tectonism, as they are commonly amenable to dating and may provide information about surface displacement and changes in sea level since their deposition. In this study, Last Interglacial (MIS 5e; 128–116 ka) shoreline successions from 47 locations across southeastern Australia are reviewed. The surface [...]
Benchmarking analog and ensemble-based seasonal forecasting strategies for water management in the Upper Rio Grande basin
Published: 2026-01-17
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Hydrology
In the southwestern US, declining runoff efficiencies driven by a warming climate have undermined the skill of seasonal water supply forecast (WSF) methods used for reservoir management by local to federal agencies. Seasonal water allocations are often based on deterministic inflow sequences, derived by matching historical streamflow traces (analogs) to statistical WSF volumes; yet model-based [...]
Introducing Difference: from Euclidean Space to Geological Limits
Published: 2026-01-16
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Mathematics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The Lithotectonic Framework (LTF) provides a systematic approach to describing regional geology in terms of geological history. While LTF has been applied to vocabulary development and regional geological description, its theoretical foundations have remained undocumented. This paper introduces the Spatio-Temporal Framework (STF), which extends Euclidean geometry by adding 'difference' as a [...]
Global sediment transport intermittency is set by river planform
Published: 2026-01-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geomorphology, Hydrology, Sedimentology
Patterns of water and sediment flux in rivers are key to understanding landscape responses to environmental change. Quantifying water intermittency in rivers (from perennial to ephemeral) provides vital context for interpreting long-term hydrographs and flood frequency, yet controls on corresponding sediment intermittency are poorly understood due to measurement challenges. We present the first [...]
The Coupling Cloud: A community database of megathrust kinematic coupling models
Published: 2026-01-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences
Kinematic coupling models inverted from geodetic data are widely used to evaluate how slip deficit is distributed along subduction megathrusts during the interseismic period, and are central to earthquake and tsunami hazard assessment. Yet, existing coupling models differ widely in methodology and inputs, lack common community standards, and are scattered across publications and repositories. [...]
Generation of Random Geological Models Using Multi-Randomization for Machine Learning
Published: 2026-01-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences
Role of Lithospheric and Upper-Mantle Heterogeneities in Controlling Intraplate Seismicity in Central and Southeastern Brazil
Published: 2026-01-12
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology
Seismicity in Central and Southeastern Brazil is spatially heterogeneous, with active zones showing little correspondence to major geological provinces, a pattern typical of many intraplate settings worldwide. While previous studies have explored possible controls using geophysical observations, the relative roles of crustal and upper-mantle heterogeneities in shaping the regional stress fields [...]
The magnitude of equilibrium isotope fractionation of Mg between forsterite, diopside and melt at liquidus temperatures
Published: 2026-01-12
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Mineral Physics
We examine the equilibrium fractionation of Mg isotopes between forsterite, diopside, and a coexisting melt at liquidus temperatures using a combination of analyses of petrological-experiment products and atomic-scale simulations. Our experiment yields ∆²⁶Mgol/melt = -0.058 ± 0.032 ‰ (2s.e.) and ∆²⁶Mgcpx/melt = 0.060 ± 0.034 ‰ (2s.e.) for crystals grown from a near-cotectic basaltic melt in the [...]
Paleolatitude.org 3.0: a calculator for paleoclimate and paleobiology studies based on a new global paleogeography model
Published: 2026-01-11
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Paleogeography, and particularly the paleolatitude, provides key context in the interpretation of paleoclimatic and paleobiological data but these fields are typically studied by scientists in different disciplines. To facilitate communication between these disciplines, a decade ago the online Paleolatitude.org calculator was developed. This provided for any coordinate on stable tectonic plates a [...]