Nature Geoscience contents: January 2014 Volume 7 Number 1 pp1-76

TABLE OF CONTENTS January 2014 Volume 7, Issue 1 Editorials Correspondence In the press Research Highlights News and Views Letters Articles Corrigendum Subscribe   Facebook   RSS   Recommend to library   Twitter   Advertisement NatureJournals app for iPad The NatureJournals app for iPad now boasts over 25 Nature-branded titles. Subscribe to any journal in the app for $35.99* and gain access to world class research on the move. www.nature.com/content/app/anytitleoffer *Apple exchange rates apply. Limited time offer available on all journals except Scientific Reports. iPad is a trademark of Apple Inc.   Editorials Top Peer-review variations   p1 doi:10.1038/ngeo2059 In our trial of a double-blind procedure for peer review, authors' awareness of their peer-review choices in the early stages of writing a paper is key for their decision to opt in or out. Arctic loss   p1 doi:10.1038/ngeo2060 The deaths of 11 rescue workers that set out to help a research boat in stormy Arctic waters highlights the perils of collecting data at sea. Correspondence Top Atlantic overturning in decline?   pp2 - 3 Jon Robson, Dan Hodson, Ed Hawkins & Rowan Sutton doi:10.1038/ngeo2050 Filling the phosphorus fertilizer gap in developing countries   p3 Andrew Simons, Dawit Solomon, Worku Chibssa, Garrick Blalock & Johannes Lehmann doi:10.1038/ngeo2049 In the press Top The day the Earth smiled   p4 Emily Lakdawalla doi:10.1038/ngeo2048 Research Highlights Top Geodynamics: Mountains afloat | Planetary science: Holey Mercury | Climate change: Tropics on the move | Palaeoclimate: Tethys effect News and Views Top Marine biogeochemistry: Arctic shelf methane sounds alarm   pp6 - 7 Peter Brewer doi:10.1038/ngeo2051 Large quantities of methane lie trapped beneath the floor of the Arctic Ocean. Measurements in the southern Laptev Sea around the Lena River delta suggest that bubbles and storms facilitate the flux of some of this submarine methane to the atmosphere. See also: Article by Shakhova et al. Early Earth: Archaean drips   pp7 - 8 Claude Herzberg doi:10.1038/ngeo2033 The Archaean Earth was much hotter than today. Numerical modelling shows that the base of thickened crust that formed at the time would have been so dense that it dripped back into the mantle. See also: Letter by Johnson et al. Planetary science: Flow of an alien ocean   pp8 - 9 Jason Goodman doi:10.1038/ngeo2034 Liquid water may lurk beneath the frozen surfaces of Jupiter's moon Europa and other icy worlds. Extending ocean science beyond Earth, planetary oceanographers are linking Europa's ocean dynamics to its enigmatic surface geology. See also: Letter by Soderlund et al. Economic geology: Copper conundrums   pp10 - 11 Cin-Ty A. Lee doi:10.1038/ngeo2039 The metal content of magmas erupted at subduction zone arcs is thought to be derived from the mantle. A correlation between crustal thickness and copper content in arc magmas worldwide, however, reveals an important role for the crust in the upper plate. See also: Letter by Chiaradia Geomagnetism: Mantle-driven magnetic field?   p11 Alicia Newton doi:10.1038/ngeo2052 Geoscience JOBS of the week Boundary-Layer Meteorologist (PhD) Universität Tübingen Physical Oceanographer King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals Academic Position in Physical Geography Bar-Ilan University Sustainable engineering of coastal systems Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) Postdoctoral Research Associate - Zooplankton Ecology University of Washington More Science jobs from Letters Top Common 0.1 bar tropopause in thick atmospheres set by pressure-dependent infrared transparency   pp12 - 15 T. D. Robinson & D. C. Catling doi:10.1038/ngeo2020 In many planetary atmospheres, including that of Earth, the base of the stratosphere—the tropopause—occurs at an atmospheric pressure of 0.1 bar. A physically based model demonstrates that the pressure-dependence of transparency to infrared radiation leads to a common tropopause pressure that is probably applicable to many planetary bodies with thick atmospheres. Ocean-driven heating of Europa's icy shell at low latitudes   pp16 - 19 K. M. Soderlund, B. E. Schmidt, J. Wicht & D. D. Blankenship doi:10.1038/ngeo2021 On Jupiter's icy moon Europa, enigmatic chaos terrain—where the icy crust is cut by a jumble of ridges and cracks—occurs most commonly at lower latitudes. Simulations of convection in the ocean underlying Europa's icy crust suggest that ocean dynamics can control an enhanced flow of heat to Europa's equatorial surface, and hence geological activity. See also: News and Views by Goodman Potential influence of sulphur bacteria on Palaeoproterozoic phosphogenesis   pp20 - 24 Aivo Lepland, Lauri Joosu, Kalle Kirsimäe, Anthony R. Prave, Alexander E. Romashkin et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2005 The first known phosphorus-rich deposits formed 2 billion years ago, but their origins are unclear. Geochemical and palaeontological analyses of 2-billion-year-old deposits from northwest Russia suggest that the presence of sulphur-oxidizing bacteria and a sharp oxic–anoxic transition in the sediments allowed for phosphorus accumulation in this setting. Evidence for biogenic graphite in early Archaean Isua metasedimentary rocks   pp25 - 28 Yoko Ohtomo, Takeshi Kakegawa, Akizumi Ishida, Toshiro Nagase & Minik T. Rosing doi:10.1038/ngeo2025 The Archaean rocks of Isua, West Greenland, contain graphite, but its origins are debated. Geochemical and microscopic analyses suggest that the graphite was formed from biologically formed carbon that was deposited at least 3.7 billion years ago. Motion in the north Iceland volcanic rift zone accommodated by bookshelf faulting   pp29 - 33 Robert G. Green, Robert S. White & Tim Greenfield doi:10.1038/ngeo2012 At mid-ocean ridges, the movements between rift segments are usually accommodated by transform faults that are oriented perpendicular to the rift axis. Analysis of seismic data from rift segments exposed in Iceland shows that such movements can also occur through the rotation of several small faults and crustal blocks that slip like books tilting on a shelf. Prolonged Canterbury earthquake sequence linked to widespread weakening of strong crust   pp34 - 37 Martin Reyners, Donna Eberhart-Phillips & Stacey Martin doi:10.1038/ngeo2013 The Canterbury earthquake sequence that struck New Zealand in 2010 and 2011 was characterized by an extended series of aftershocks. Analysis of seismic data show that a broad region of previously strong crustal rocks was weakened during the mainshock, and variations in crustal strength may have contributed to the protracted seismic activity. Limit of strain partitioning in the Himalaya marked by large earthquakes in western Nepal   pp38 - 42 M. A. Murphy, M. H. Taylor, J. Gosse, C. R. P. Silver, D. M. Whipp et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2017 Great earthquakes in the Himalaya are thought to occur mostly along the range front. Field mapping and radiocarbon dating reveal earthquake rupture on a previously unrecognized fault in the interior of the western Himalaya, which forms part of a key structural component of the mountain range, implying that seismic risk evaluations should be revised. Copper enrichment in arc magmas controlled by overriding plate thickness   pp43 - 46 Massimo Chiaradia doi:10.1038/ngeo2028 The characteristics of magmas typically associated with porphyry copper deposits are thought to be imparted in the mantle. Statistical assessment of over 40,000 geochemical analyses of magmatic rocks formed in subduction zones worldwide, however, shows that the characteristics of these magmatic rocks are systematically controlled by the thickness of the arc crust. See also: News and Views by Lee Delamination and recycling of Archaean crust caused by gravitational instabilities   pp47 - 52 Tim E. Johnson, Michael Brown, Boris J. P. Kaus & Jill A. VanTongeren doi:10.1038/ngeo2019 The volume of Archaean crust preserved at Earth's surface today is low. Thermodynamic calculations and geodynamic modelling show that the thick, primary crust that would have formed on a much hotter Archaean Earth was denser than the underlying mantle, and would have therefore been recycled back into the mantle as drips. See also: News and Views by Herzberg Articles Top Recurring slope lineae in equatorial regions of Mars   pp53 - 58 Alfred S. McEwen, Colin M. Dundas, Sarah S. Mattson, Anthony D. Toigo, Lujendra Ojha et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2014 Dark streaks that appear on the surface of Mars during warm seasons have been observed at the mid-latitudes and tentatively attributed to the flow of briny water. Imagery from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter over multiple Mars years suggests that these seasonally active features are also present in equatorial regions, where liquid surface water is not expected. Warming early Mars with CO2 and H2    pp59 - 63 Ramses M. Ramirez, Ravi Kopparapu, Michael E. Zugger, Tyler D. Robinson, Richard Freedman et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2000 Ancient valleys suggest a warm early Mars where liquid water flowed, but a greenhouse effect strong enough to offset a dim early Sun has been difficult to explain. Climate simulations suggest that sufficient concentrations of the greenhouse gases CO2 and H2 — outgassed during volcanic eruptions — could have warmed Mars above water's freezing point. Ebullition and storm-induced methane release from the East Siberian Arctic Shelf   pp64 - 70 Natalia Shakhova, Igor Semiletov, Ira Leifer, Valentin Sergienko, Anatoly Salyuk et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2007 Vast quantities of carbon are stored in shallow Arctic reservoirs, such as subsea and terrestrial permafrost. Observations in the Laptev Sea suggest that bubbles deliver significant quantities of the methane stored in subsea permafrost to the overlying water column. See also: News and Views by Brewer Long-period seismicity in the shallow volcanic edifice formed from slow-rupture earthquakes   pp71 - 75 Christopher J. Bean, Louis De Barros, Ivan Lokmer, Jean-Philippe Metaxian, Gareth O' Brien et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2027 Volcanic eruptions are often preceded by long-period seismic events that were thought to be generated by the resonance of cracks filled with magmatic fluid. Analysis and modelling of long-period seismicity at volcanoes in Italy, Costa Rica and Peru shows that it could instead be caused by slow rupture along faults in the upper volcanic edifice. Corrigendum Top Corrigendum: Central West Antarctica among the most rapidly warming regions on Earth   p76 David H. Bromwich, Julien P. Nicolas, Andrew J. Monaghan, Matthew A. Lazzara, Linda M. Keller et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2016 Top Advertisement Nature Insight Coastal Regions Human impacts on the processes shaping coastal regions  Access the Insight online    Natureevents is a fully searchable, multi-disciplinary database designed to maximise exposure for events organisers. The contents of the Natureevents Directory are now live. The digital version is available here. Find the latest scientific conferences, courses, meetings and symposia on natureevents.com. For event advertising opportunities across the Nature Publishing Group portfolio please contact natureevents@nature.com More Nature Events

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