Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Geology
Interplay between supercontinents and accretionary orogens recorded in 200 million years of metallogeny
Published: 2026-06-21
Subjects: Geochemistry, Geology, Tectonics and Structure
The assembly of supercontinents and the evolution of accretionary orogens are one of the most fundamental drivers of Earth's lithospheric architecture and mineral endowment. Here we reconstruct the 200 million years metallogenic history of the mainland Australian part of the Delamerian convergent margin, a pivotal segment of the East Gondwana paleo-Pacific margin that archives the transition from [...]
Linking double seismic zones to oceanic lithosphere rheological layering: the role of mid-lithospheric discontinuities
Published: 2026-06-18
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The origin of the ubiquitous lower seismic layer (LSL) in double seismic zones (DSZs) within subducting oceanic lithosphere remains one of the most persistent unresolved problems in subduction-zone seismicity. Analysis of recent geophysical observations reveals a close spatial association between the LSL and the oceanic mid-lithospheric discontinuity (MLD), a feature attributed to the [...]
Subsurface advective flow unveils the architecture of Earth’s crustal biosphere
Published: 2026-06-09
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Geology, Microbiology, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences
The subsurface biosphere is one of Earth’s largest microbial reservoirs, yet its spatial extent remains poorly constrained due to limited direct access. Here we propose using the integrated environmental readouts encoded in deep subsurface fluids to shift from simply mapping where life can be detected to constraining where life can exist. Deeply-sourced advective fluids provide an integrated [...]
Was there an ocean between the North China-Qaidam and Tarim blocks connecting the Mongol-Okhotsk and Paleo-Tethys oceans?
Published: 2026-06-01
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Tectonics and Structure
The tectonic history of the final amalgamation of Eurasia is puzzling: geological and paleomagnetic data yield contrasting interpretations. Paleomagnetism shows that the North China Block and the Qaidam Basin fragment, migrated northward by several thousand kilometers relative to Eurasia until the latest Jurassic-Early Cretaceous. If true, plate tectonic principles require that a North [...]
R-critical constraints on relamination efficiency: The role of mechanical coupling in continental crust recycling
Published: 2026-05-30
Subjects: Geochemistry, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology
Relamination—the reincorporation of deeply subducted continental crust into the overriding plate—has been proposed as a major mechanism for continental growth and differentiation. While numerical models and high-pressure experiments demonstrate the thermochemical feasibility of this process, a fundamental question remains: under what mechanical conditions is relamination sufficiently efficient to [...]
Post-glacial sedimentary evolution and stratigraphy of the shallow offshore areas of the Shetland Islands (UK)
Published: 2026-05-26
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
We present a high-resolution seismic–sedimentological reconstruction of post-glacial sedimentation in three shallow offshore basins around the Shetland Islands (Dury Voe, Colgrave Sound/Basta Voe, and Yell Sound), based on integrated multibeam bathymetry, sub-bottom profiler data, and 77 vibrocores supported by radiocarbon dating. Sediment distribution is strongly controlled by inherited bedrock [...]
Trapped Lee-Wave Resonance Determines Antarctic Megadune Wavelength
Published: 2026-05-23
Subjects: Applied Statistics, Categorical Data Analysis, Design of Experiments and Sample Surveys, Earth Sciences, Fluid Dynamics, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Glaciology, Mineral Physics, Other Earth Sciences, Paleontology, Physics, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Planetary Glaciology, Planetary Hydrology, Planetary Mineral Physics, Planetary Sciences, Planetary Sedimentology, Sedimentology, Statistical Methodology, Statistical Models, Statistics and Probability, Stratigraphy
Snow megadunes cover 5×105 km2 of the East Antarctic plateau, biasing surface mass balance estimates and overprinting ice-core signals—yet their 2–5 km wavelength has lacked a quantitative selection mechanism for two decades. We first falsify the standard formula λ∗ = 2πU0/N through a calibration-free spatial test: eight REMA 2 m tiles across two independent locations at 81.5–82.0°S show no [...]
Geodynamic Model Description for Ptolemy’s Germania Magna
Published: 2026-05-13
Subjects: Analysis, Astrophysics and Astronomy, Dynamical Systems, Dynamic Systems, Earth Sciences, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Mathematics, Other Applied Mathematics, Other Astrophysics and Astronomy, Other Earth Sciences, Other Planetary Sciences, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Statistical Models, Statistics and Probability, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure, The Sun and the Solar System, Volcanology
This model proposes that the well-documented geodynamic and climatic disruption of the 6th century AD involved a reactivation of the ancient Caledonian Deformation Front (CDF) and the Trans-European Suture Zone (TESZ), most likely triggered by cosmic events in the form of impacts or airbursts. Large-scale inversion tectonics, driven by Alpine compressive forces, are argued to have caused [...]
Orthomagmatic Ni-Cu-Au-PGE mineralisation in Ireland and Northern Ireland: A review of historic exploration and future prospectivity
Published: 2026-05-13
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geology
Platinum group elements (PGEs) are essential constituents in established and emerging green technologies, yet European supply is dominated by a small number of very large deposits, necessitating the identification of alternative domestic sources. Most economic mineralisation is associated with orthomagmatic Ni-Cu-Au-PGE systems, where chalcophile elements are concentrated within sulphide minerals [...]
Reassessing long-term exhumation rates in magmatic terranes
Published: 2026-05-10
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Tectonics and Structure
Crustal exhumation is central to mountain building, weathering, and sediment production processes, which significantly influence the composition and behavior of Earth’s oceans and atmosphere. It also controls the formation, enrichment, and preservation of porphyry copper deposits, which are a vital source of metals for the clean energy technologies underpinning the global green energy transition. [...]
River intermittency and Eocene climate change in the Castissent and Montllobat formations of the southern Pyrenean Foreland
Published: 2026-05-08
Subjects: Geology, Geomorphology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Patterns of river water and sediment transport through time, or river intermittency factors, are generally considered to be highly sensitive to climate and tectonics. Determining the intermittency of rivers in ancient hothouse climates could provide a unique lens through which to investigate Earth’s response to climate change. However, this requires strong constraints on both mean and bankfull [...]
Reduced geomagnetic shielding increased UV-B radiation at Earth’s surface during the Laschamps Event
Published: 2026-05-01
Subjects: Astrophysics and Astronomy, Atmospheric Sciences, Biochemistry, Biogeochemistry, Biology, Earth Sciences, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Environmental Chemistry, Environmental Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Life Sciences, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Life Sciences, Paleobiology, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Geochemistry, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Planetary Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Statistics and Probability
Exposure to excess UV-B radiation can harm organisms through DNA damage and oxidative stress, and has likely been a key ecological and evolutionary driver throughout Earth’s history. Here, we show UV-B at Earth’s surface was significantly increased during the Laschamps Event, the last major geomagnetic excursion ca. 41ka BP. During the Laschamps, we find significant and prolonged (lasting [...]
Melt-dominated mid-crust in the 575–500 Ma Damara Orogen: Field constraints on an interconnected migmatite–granite system
Published: 2026-04-25
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geochemistry, Geology, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure
Modern thermomechanical models emphasise the role of partial melting and granite magmatism on the structural and tectonic evolution of orogenic belts. Partially molten mid-crust can trigger a change from localised deformation to distributed ductile flow, while also accommodating chemical differentiation of the crust. In the southern Central Zone of Namibia’s Damara Orogen, it is unclear whether [...]
Upper Crustal Control on Nearshore Subduction Mechanics in Cascadia
Published: 2026-04-24
Subjects: Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Tectonics and Structure
Along-strike upper plate heterogeneity is widely observed at subduction margins, but its direct influence on slab geometry and interseismic deformation remains debated. Here, we investigate the effect of upper-crustal geological segmentation on nearshore subduction mechanics at the Cascadia margin. Using a high-resolution, shore-crossing 3-D seismic tomography model from central to southern [...]
The Geological Pathway Diversity Model (GPDM): A Unified Classification and Predictive Framework for Anomalous Luminous Phenomena
Published: 2026-04-16
Subjects: Atmospheric Sciences, Geology, Geophysics and Seismology, Other Physics, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Tectonics and Structure
Atmospheric plasma phenomena — persistent luminous orbs, recurrent earth lights, and earthquake lights observed at geographically distributed sites worldwide — share a common mechanism family rooted in stress-activated electronic charge carrier physics. The Geological Pathway Diversity Model (GPDM) formally classifies six geological activation pathways. Version 2.4 introduces four new Variable 3 [...]