Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Earth Sciences
A Computer Vision Framework for Estimating Surface Habitability from Mars Using Convolutional Analysis
Published: 2025-10-22
Subjects: Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, Biology, Earth Sciences, Other Planetary Sciences, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Sciences, Planetary Sedimentology, Statistical Methodology, Theory and Algorithms
Identifying signs of life in extraterrestrial environments is one of the growing challenges in planetary science. Conventional approaches of detecting habitability rely heavily on direct contact with biosignatures or geological analyses, but limited data and mission costs hold back such methods. This work introduces a computer vision-based pipeline that analyzes planetary surface images to [...]
First documented record of the ammonite Turrilites costatus LAMARCK, 1801 from the Cenomanian of northern Saudi Arabia: Implications for Arabian Plate paleogeography
Published: 2025-10-19
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
This study presents the first documented occurrence of the heteromorph ammonite genus Turrilites LAMARCK, 1801, from the Cretaceous strata of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. A dense, in-situ fossil assemblage, dominated by numerous specimens identified as Turrilites costatus LAMARCK, 1801, was discovered in an outcrop of the Aruma Formation located 9.5 km south of the city of Ar’ar in northern Saudi [...]
Sustainable Groundwater Decisions: Hydro-Economic Model Applications to Irrigation in Contrasting Environmental Conditions
Published: 2025-10-16
Subjects: Agriculture, Earth Sciences, Hydrology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Groundwater is important for global agriculture but increasing populations and rising food demand are placing significant pressure on its sustainable use for irrigation. Effective, financially viable irrigation management strategies are urgently needed. This study applies a farm-level hydro-economic model to two contrasting sites: the High Plains Aquifer (HPA), a deep, overexploited, unconfined [...]
Radiogenic Sr-Nd-Pb isotope behavior in different grain-sized fine lithic materials during basalt weathering
Published: 2025-10-16
Subjects: Atmospheric Sciences, Climate, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Geomorphology, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Radiogenic isotopes are widely used as sediment provenance tracers; however, their weathering response has not been fully established. This study investigates the weathering sensitivity of Sr-Nd-Pb isotopes in fine lithic fractions (FLF; grain size <2 μm, <5 μm, and <20 μm) capable of long-range transport. Geochemical and isotope compositions have been measured in the physicochemically [...]
Glacier processes from seismic recordings on Sørsdal Glacier, East Antarctica
Published: 2025-10-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Glaciology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
A catalogue of seismic events is produced and analysed for Sørsdal Glacier, East Antarctica. Recordings were made using an irregular array of three broadband and eight short-period seismometers, with approximately 3 km aperture, deployed slightly upstream of the expected grounding line during the 2017-18 austral summer. The broadband sensors were used to construct the event catalogue, and the [...]
A Collaborative Assessment of Coastal Ocean Acidification Monitoring in Maine & Standard Operating Procedures and Best Practices for the Collection of Continuous pH Data in Coastal Marine Environments
Published: 2025-10-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Environmental Monitoring, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology
The ‘Sensor Squad’ of the Maine Ocean Climate Collaborative is the product of a 2023 Maine Coastal and Marine Climate Action Fund grant to conduct “A two-year pilot project designed to address and overcome technological barriers to ocean acidification data collection, develop protocols to elevate quality assurance and ensure comparable data, and meet regularly to discuss project results and data [...]
A new chronostratigraphic anchor for the early Cambrian: Integrating δ¹³C chemostratigraphy and Bayesian astrochronology in West Gondwana (Anti-Atlas, Morocco)
Published: 2025-10-15
Subjects: Earth Sciences
The early Cambrian represents a critical interval in Earth’s history characterized by rapid biological innovation and significant perturbations in global carbon cycling. However, a comprehensive understanding of the processes at play and their spatial and temporal relationships is hindered by fossil provincialism, diachronous bioevents, and inadequate high-precision geochronology. The Tiout [...]
Eocene lacustrine–volcaniclastic deposits at Aliabad (Central Iran): A possible Proto-basin of the Oligo-Miocene Qom Formation
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Volcanology
Central Iran hosts intricate Cenozoic successions where the Oligo‑Miocene Qom Formation forms a major hydrocarbon reservoir. The stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental relationship of the Eocene Aliabad deposits to this formation has been controversial. This study integrates stratigraphic logging, petrography, geochemistry (XRD/XRF), and ichnology on 46 thin sections from Aliabad and 157 [...]
Coral reef and mangrove interplay during Mid- and Late-Holocene sea-level changes in Belitung Island, Indonesia
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Earth Sciences
Coral reefs and mangrove forests are susceptible coastal ecosystems, particularly in light of intense human-induced pressures, including the anticipated sea-level rise in the 21st century. Here, we explore the chronology and interconnectedness between coral reef and mangrove interplay in response to Holocene sea-level changes, taking Belitung Island, Indonesia, as a case study. We describe the [...]
Vector Graphics-Based Geospatial Contour Maps: A Web-Native Interactive Approach for Modern Geospatial Data Science Applications
Published: 2025-10-14
Subjects: Computer Engineering, Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Graphics and Human Computer Interfaces
Visualizing scalar fields (e.g., temperature, precipitation etc.) on the web is often done via pre‑rendered raster tiles. While simple to serve and fast to access, rasters limit interactivity (feature picking, dynamic styling) and typically require heavy pre‑generation pipelines. Raster tiles remain the dominant method for web-based scalar field visualization, but they are storage-heavy and [...]
Calcareous nannofossil assemblages from El Kef (Tunisia) reveal strong bathymetric controls on Northern Hemisphere recovery patterns following the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg) mass extinction
Published: 2025-10-12
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg) bolide impact ~66 million years ago caused the near-demise of calcareous nannoplankton (coccolithophores): key primary producers and major contributors to the biological pump that exports organic carbon from the surface ocean to the deep sea. Although their mass extinction likely had a profound impact on ecosystem structure and function, the interpretation of early [...]
Informing landfill emission reporting programs through remote sensing
Published: 2025-10-11
Subjects: Earth Sciences
Landfills are a significant source of global methane emissions. To quantify and track emissions from these sources over time, jurisdictions and industry experts generally use emission models that involve a variety of process and waste characterization assumptions. These models are used to assess landfill operational performance and establish emission reduction targets. Testing the assumptions of [...]
Curlew 1.0: Spatio-temporal implicit geological modelling with neural fields in python
Published: 2025-10-10
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
We present curlew, an open-source python package for structural geological modelling using neural fields. This modelling framework incorporates various local constraints (value, gradient, orientation and (in)equalities) and tailored global loss functions to ensure data-consistent and geologically realistic predictions. Random Fourier Feature (RFF) encodings are used to improve model convergence [...]
Formation and fluxes of natural hydrogen in the crust and upper mantle
Published: 2025-10-10
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is a fundamental component of planetary evolution and an important energy source for microbial life. It is now understood that natural mechanisms, spanning geological and biological processes, can produce high concentrations of hydrogen in natural fluids. Quantifying the processes that modulate natural hydrogen concentrations is necessary not only for conceptualising the [...]
Steep nested clinoforms in the mixed siliciclastic-carbonate Sobrarbe Deltaic Complex (Eocene, Aínsa Basin, Spain)
Published: 2025-10-09
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
This study investigates the processes controlling the development of nested clinoforms in outcrops of the Eocene Sobrarbe Deltaic Complex of the Aínsa Basin, highlighting their significance as archives of basin-margin evolution. Small-scale clinoforms record the higher-frequency cycles of delta progradation and the coetaneous development of a carbonate factory, while large-scale clinoforms record [...]