Preprints
There are 5428 Preprints listed.
The Balanced Billion
Published: 2023-09-27
Subjects: Earth Sciences
There is a mid-Proterozoic stretch of Earth’s history (roughly 1.9–0.9 Ga) called, non-affectionately, the “boring billion”. The moniker was first inspired several decades ago by the apparent absence of any significant carbon isotope anomalies and was linked to the relatively “boring” interval in between Earth’s broadly two-step pattern in atmospheric oxygenation. However, in light of (i) the [...]
Combined genomic and imaging techniques show intense arsenic enrichment caused by detoxification in a microbial mat of the Dead Sea shore
Published: 2023-09-26
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Geochemistry, Paleobiology
Microbial mats and microbialites are essential tools for reconstructing early life and its environments. To better understand microbial trace element cycling, a microbial mat was collected from the sinkhole systems of the western shores of the Dead Sea, a dynamic environment exhibiting diverse extreme environments. Intense arsenic enrichment (up to 6.5 million times higher than current water [...]
Reliability of Raman analyses of CO2-dominated fluid inclusions as a rapid barometer at Kīlauea
Published: 2023-09-26
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Interpreting signals of volcanic unrest requires knowledge of the architecture of the magmatic system, particularly the depths at which magmas are stored. Such information can also be vital to help predict changes in eruptive style and vigour. However, popular petrological tools to assess magma storage depths (e.g., melt inclusions) are costly, present large uncertainties, and are too slow for [...]
Reproducing the Mid-Piacenzian Warm Period Climate in the 2020s.
Published: 2023-09-25
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
The current expectation of climatologists is that levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases, such as methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), will correspond, in the 2020s, to an increase in mean annual global near-surface atmospheric temperature of less than 1.5°C above the pre-industrial Holocene norm (1750 baseline; atmospheric CO2 = 278 ppm). This paper will argue, [...]
No respite from permafrost-thaw impacts in absence of a global tipping point
Published: 2023-09-25
Subjects: Biogeochemistry, Climate, Earth Sciences, Geomorphology, Hydrology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Arctic permafrost, the largest non-seasonal component of Earth’s cryosphere, contains a significant climate-sensitive carbon pool. Its potential for loss due to climatic changes leading to a global tipping point, where thawing accelerates with disproportionate impacts, remains debated. Here, we provide an integrative perspective on this question, building on a cross-disciplinary meta-analysis of [...]
Space-time data-driven modeling of precipitation-induced shallow landslides in South Tyrol, Italy
Published: 2023-09-25
Subjects: Engineering, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Shallow landslides represent potentially damaging processes in mountain areas worldwide. These geomorphic processes are usually caused by a combination of predisposing, preparatory, and triggering environmental factors. At regional scales, data-driven methods have been used to model shallow landslides by addressing the spatial and temporal components separately. So far, few studies have explored [...]
Accuracy of UAV mapping of Natura 2000 forest, wetland and grassland habitats: Do we need more seasons or more spectral bands?
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Biodiversity, Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Research Methods in Life Sciences
Mapping and monitoring of Natura 2000 habitats (Habitat Directive 92/43/EEC) is one of the key activities to ensure the protection of natural habitats in Europe. Remote sensing can help to acquire high-quality maps of the distribution and conservation status of Natura 2000 habitats, for example through classifying multispectral data. However, due to the high number of habitats (classes) [...]
Omnivariant Generalized Least Squares Regression: Theory, Geochronological Applications, and Making the Case for Reconciled Δ47 calibrations
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Applied Mathematics, Earth Sciences, Geochemistry
Least-squares regression methods are mathematically powerful, conceptually and computationally simple, and widely used in many fields. However, none of the commonly-used flavors of least-squares regression, such as York regression or Generalized Least Squares (GLS), take into account the full set of covariances between all observed (x,y) values. Here we describe the Omnivariant Generalized Least [...]
Komatiites: their geochemistry and origins
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Komatiites are ultra-hot ultramafic lavas, largely restricted to the Archaean. They represent an extreme endmember of terrestrial magmatism and challenge our understanding of how mantle melting operates. We briefly introduce this compositionally diverse group of lavas and critically evaluate constraints on their formation. Despite evidence for moderate water contents in some komatiites, the vast [...]
FireSight: Utilizing Deep Learning for Wildfire Prediction And Determining Escape Routes
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Engineering, Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Since 2000, seven million acres have burned every year. Yet, since robust analytics are scarce, capitalizing on machine learning algorithms have the capability to bridge gaps in decision making and effective deployment. Despite this, a major limitation in current research is resolution and accuracy. Utilizing public data from NASA’s MODIS, LP DAAC, University of Idaho, and UC Irvine, 12 input [...]
Inter-annual Variation of Summer Southwest Monsoon Rainfall over the Monsoon Core Region of the Eastern Bay of Bengal and its Relationship with Oceans
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology
Using rainfall data from the Observation and, ERA5 reanalysis of sea surface temperature, this study examined the inter-annual variation of summer southwest monsoon rainfall on the eastern Bay of Bengal (BoB) mainland Indochina regions associated with ENSO. The composite study exhibits decreased rainfall in the eastern coastal region of BoB, and an increase in the northern Indo-Myanmar region [...]
Messages from the past; the petroglyphs of El Hierro Island
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Earth Sciences
Ancient cultures have frequently made use of stone surfaces to carve and engrave symbols, letters and messages for others. These petroglyphs usually have a lasting character and are frequently preserved well beyond the survival of the culture that produced the petroglyphs. In this article we focus on the written and pictorial testimony of the pre-Hispanic era of the island of El Hierro [...]
Chapter 4. Bacterial and archaeal DNA from lake sediments
Published: 2023-09-22
Subjects: Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Life Sciences, Life Sciences, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
General microbial patterns of biogeography can be established based on sedimentary DNA (sedDNA) retrieved from diverse inland aquatic ecosystems, provided that certain variable environmental factors are taken into consideration in order to trace the admixture of prokaryotic sedDNA preserved in lacustrine sediments from source to sink. These include several watershed characteristics, such as [...]
Catchment characterization: current descriptors, knowledge gaps and future opportunities
Published: 2023-09-20
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences
An ability to describe hydrologically relevant differences between places is at the core of our science. A common way to characterize hydrological catchments is to use descriptors that summarize important physical aspects of the system, often by aggregating heterogeneous geospatial data into a single number. Such descriptors aim to capture various facets of catchment functioning and structure, [...]
Complexity in the 3D stress fields of mid-ocean ridge tectonics: a manifestation of sub-crustal mush dynamics
Published: 2023-09-20
Subjects: Physical Sciences and Mathematics
Mid-ocean ridge (MOR) systems evolve in strongly heterogeneous stress environments. However, the origin of such stress complexity still awaits a comprehensive explanation, which is the central theme of the present article. This study develops a thermo-mechanical model to demonstrate the multi-ordered 3D convective circulations, produced by decompression melting in the mushy region, as the key [...]