AGU - Earth | Oceans | Atmosphere | Space | Planets

Alaska's Columbia Glacier has been studied intently, as its fast calving rate was seen as a potential danger to shipping in Prince Williams Sound, scene of the Exxon Valdez disaster.

As the search for planets in other solar systems picks up speed and more and more dedicated scientists turn their eyes toward the heavens, observations of our mysterious, cloud-covered "sister planet" Venus become more and more important. Venus's evolution and geology are very similar to Earth's, yet its acid clouds and lead-melting surface temperatures make it extremely unlikely as a habitat for any form of life as we know it.

A Continental Plate Boundary offers in one place the most comprehensive, up-to-date knowledge for researchers and students to learn about the tectonics and plate dynamics of the Pacific-Australian continental plate boundary in South Island and about the application of modern geological and geophysical methods.

This book summarizes findings on the newly discovered "post-perovskite phase transition" in the lower mantle that may explain the nature of the D" layer and has important implications for many fields in solid Earth geophysics, such as mineral physics, seismology, geodynamics, and geochemistry. It is based on a series of conferences on the Earth's mantle and deep interior held in 2004 and 2005.

The ocean's meridional overturning circulation (MOC) is a key factor in climate change. The Atlantic MOC, in particular, is believed to play an active role in the regional and global climate variability. It is associated with the recent debate on rapid climate change, the Atlantic Multi-Decadal Oscillation (AMO), global warming, and Atlantic hurricanes.

The Kamchatka Peninsula and contiguous North Pacific Rim is among the most active regions in the world. Kamchatka itself contains 29 active volcanoes, 4 now in a state of semi-continuous eruption, and has experienced 14 magnitude 7 or greater earthquakes since accurate recording began in 1962. At its heart is the uniquely acute subduction cusp where the Kamchatka and Aleutian Arcs and Emperor Seamount Chain meet.

Groundwater is a critical resource and the principal source of drinking water for over 1.5 billion people. In 2001, the National Research Council cited as a "grand challenge" our need to understand the processes that control water movement in the subsurface. This volume faces that challenge in terms of data integration between complex, multi-scale hydrologic processes, and their links to other physical, chemical, and biological processes at multiple scales.