Nature Geoscience contents: May 2015 Volume 8 Number 5 pp329-415

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TABLE OF CONTENTS May 2015 Volume 8, Issue 5 Editorial Books and Arts News and Views Perspectives Letters Articles Subscribe   Facebook   RSS   Recommend to library   Twitter   Editorial Top Planetary rite of spring   p329 doi:10.1038/ngeo2441 Research on the Solar System's planets has moved beyond fly-by science. Long-term observations of planetary bodies can yield insights as the days, seasons and years pass. Books and Arts Top Wind-swept planets   p330 Nicholas Lancaster reviews Dune Worlds: How Windblown Sand Shapes Planetary Landscapes by Ralph D. Lorenz and James R. Zimbelman doi:10.1038/ngeo2428 News and Views Top Seismology: Diary of a wimpy fault   pp331 - 332 Roland Bürgmann doi:10.1038/ngeo2426 Subduction zone faults can slip slowly, generating tremor. The varying correlation between tidal stresses and tremor occurring deep in the Cascadia subduction zone suggests that the fault is inherently weak, and gets weaker as it slips. See also: Article by Houston Glacier change: Dynamic projections   pp332 - 333 Andreas Vieli doi:10.1038/ngeo2425 Mountain glaciers around the world are in decay. According to a modelling study that — unusually — includes full ice flow physics, those in Western Canada will largely be restricted to the coastal region by the year 2100. See also: Letter by Clarke et al. Planetary science: Stormy origins of Titan's dunes   pp334 - 335 Claire Newman doi:10.1038/ngeo2423 Titan's equatorial dunes seem to move in the opposite direction to the prevailing easterly winds. Infrequent methane storms at Titan's low latitudes may briefly couple surface winds to fast westerlies above, dominating the net movement of sand. See also: Letter by Charnay et al. Holocene carbon cycle: Climate or humans?   pp335 - 336 Jed O. Kaplan doi:10.1038/ngeo2432 Analyses of ice-core carbon isotopes show that variations in atmospheric CO2 levels during the past millennium are controlled by changes in land reservoirs. But whether climate variations or human activity were mainly responsible is uncertain. See also: Letter by Bauska et al. Volcanology: Electric eruption   p337 Amy Whitchurch doi:10.1038/ngeo2435 Geoscience JOBS of the week More Science jobs from Geoscience EVENT 4th Annual International Conference on Geological and Earth Sciences (GEOS 2015) 05.10.15 Singapore More science events from Perspectives Top Strong influence of westerly wind bursts on El Niño diversity   pp339 - 345 Dake Chen, Tao Lian, Congbin Fu, Mark A. Cane, Youmin Tang et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2399 El Niño diversity and its genesis are debated. An overview of existing work along with a fuzzy clustering analysis and simulations suggest that the asymmetry, irregularity and extremes of El Niño result from westerly wind bursts. Missing iris effect as a possible cause of muted hydrological change and high climate sensitivity in models   pp346 - 351 Thorsten Mauritsen and Bjorn Stevens doi:10.1038/ngeo2414 An iris effect in tropical cloud-cover was controversially proposed as a negative climate change feedback that is not represented in climate models. If such an effect exists, it could go some way to reconciling climate models and observations. Letters Top Darkening of Mercury's surface by cometary carbon   pp352 - 356 Megan Bruck Syal, Peter H. Schultz and Miriam A. Riner doi:10.1038/ngeo2397 Mercury's surface is darker than expected given its low iron content. The delivery of cometary carbon to Mercury in micrometeorite impacts may explain the planet's globally low reflectance. Transient liquid water and water activity at Gale crater on Mars   pp357 - 361 F. Javier Martin-Torres, Maria-Paz Zorzano, Patricia Valentin-Serrano, Ari-Matti Harri, Maria Genzer et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2412 Liquid water on equatorial Mars is inconsistent with large-scale climatic conditions. Humidity and temperature measurements by the Curiosity rover support the formation of subsurface liquid brines by hydration of perchlorates during the night. Methane storms as a driver of Titan's dune orientation   pp362 - 366 Benjamin Charnay, Erika Barth, Scot Rafkin, Clement Narteau, Sebastien Lebonnois et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2406 Titan's equatorial dunes propagate eastwards, whereas Titan's surface winds blow towards the West. Atmospheric simulations suggest that tropical methane storms generate strong eastward gusts that may dominate sand transport on Titan's surface. See also: News and Views by Newman Tree mortality predicted from drought-induced vascular damage   pp367 - 371 William R. L. Anderegg, Alan Flint, Cho-ying Huang, Lorraine Flint, Joseph A. Berry et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2400 Forests may be vulnerable to future droughts. A tree mortality threshold based on plant hydraulics suggests that increased drought may trigger widespread dieback in the southwestern United States by mid-century. Projected deglaciation of western Canada in the twenty-first century   pp372 - 377 Garry K. C. Clarke, Alexander H. Jarosch, Faron S. Anslow, Valentina Radić and Brian Menounos doi:10.1038/ngeo2407 The glaciers in western Canada are experiencing rapid mass loss. Projections of their fate with a model that couples physics-based ice dynamics with a surface mass balance model suggest that glacier volume will shrink by 70% by 2100. See also: News and Views by Vieli Water column methanotrophy controlled by a rapid oceanographic switch   pp378 - 382 Lea Steinle, Carolyn A. Graves, Tina Treude, Bénédicte Ferré, Arne Biastoch et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2420 Methanotrophic bacteria can consume methane emitted from the ocean floor before it reaches the atmosphere. Variations in coastal currents can reduce methane oxidation in the ocean by limiting methanotroph residence time above methane seeps. Links between atmospheric carbon dioxide, the land carbon reservoir and climate over the past millennium   pp383 - 387 Thomas K. Bauska, Fortunat Joos, Alan C. Mix, Raphael Roth, Jinho Ahn et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2422 Atmospheric CO2 concentrations varied on multidecadal timescales over the past millennium. Measurements of the carbon isotope composition of ice core CO2 suggest climate-driven changes in land carbon stores caused these fluctuations. See also: News and Views by Kaplan Dual continental rift systems generated by plume–lithosphere interaction   pp388 - 392 A. Koptev, E. Calais, E. Burov, S. Leroy and T. Gerya doi:10.1038/ngeo2401 Continental breakup can occur with or without extensive magmatic activity. Numerical simulations show that magmatic and amagmatic rifts can develop in the same tectonic setting, if a rising mantle plume is deflected to one side of the continent. Deformation–related volcanism in the Pacific Ocean linked to the Hawaiian–Emperor bend   pp393 - 397 John M. O'Connor, Kaj Hoernle, R. Dietmar Muller, Jason P. Morgan, Nathaniel P. Butterworth et al. doi:10.1038/ngeo2416 The Hawaiian–Emperor volcanic chain has a distinctive bend. Geochemical analyses show that lavas erupted on the ocean floor close to the bend formed during deformation of the Pacific Plate, implying the bend was caused by changes in plate motion. Articles Top Moist convection in hydrogen atmospheres and the frequency of Saturn's giant storms   pp398 - 403 Cheng Li and Andrew P. Ingersoll doi:10.1038/ngeo2405 Over the past 140 years, planet-encircling storms have occurred on Saturn about every 30 years. A sufficiently wet troposphere can explain the suppression of moist convection and storm recurrence interval on Saturn. Slab melting beneath the Cascade Arc driven by dehydration of altered oceanic peridotite   pp404 - 408 K. J. Walowski, P. J. Wallace, E. H. Hauri, I. Wada and M. A. Clynne doi:10.1038/ngeo2417 Fluid transport in subduction zones is complex. Geochemical analysis of lavas from the Cascade Arc shows that dehydration of the deep slab interior can trigger melting in the outer part of the subducting slab in young, hot subduction zones. Low friction and fault weakening revealed by rising sensitivity of tremor to tidal stress   pp409 - 415 Heidi Houston doi:10.1038/ngeo2419 At subduction zones, deep parts of the fault can slip slowly, generating tremor. Analysis of tremor in Cascadia reveals increasing sensitivity of slip to tidal stresses over several days, implying that the fault is weak, and weakens as it slips. See also: News and Views by Bürgmann 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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