This Spring, Geoprisms Leaves Behind a Legacy of Research by Shoreline-Crossing Scientists and the National Science Foundation
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FILLING IN THE MARGINS This spring, GeoPRISMS leaves behind a legacy of research by shoreline-crossing scientists and the National Science Foundation. Supercharged Lightning An Asteroid Double Disaster Sooty Stalagmite Records FROM THE EDITOR Editor in Chief Heather Goss, [email protected] AGU Staff Crossing the Shoreline Vice President, Communications, Amy Storey Marketing,and Media Relations Editorial hey were going to meet in San Francisco last December Manager, News and Features Editor Caryl-Sue Micalizio to celebrate the end of an era. Then the community of Science Editor Timothy Oleson scientists behind GeoPRISMS had to make the same News and Features Writer Kimberly M. S. Cartier T News and Features Writer Jenessa Duncombe adjustments all of us did and had to move those toasts into this spring. But they nevertheless gathered for virtual sessions Production & Design at AGU’s Fall Meeting 2020 to take a look at the legacy they Manager, Production and Operations Faith A. Ishii created in a set of oral sessions titled “Advances in Under- Production and Analytics Specialist Anaise Aristide Assistant Director, Design & Branding Beth Bagley standing Continental Margin Evolution: Two Decades of Senior Graphic Designer Valerie Friedman GeoPRISMS and MARGINS Science.” Senior Graphic Designer J. Henry Pereira That community actually sprung up not 2 but more than Graphic Design Intern Claire DeSmit 3 decades ago, when a group met in 1988 to discuss how Earth Marketing scientists and ocean scientists could better work together. In Communications Specialist Maria Muekalia response, the Earth Sciences and Ocean Sciences divisions of Assistant Director, Marketing & Advertising Liz Zipse the National Science Foundation (NSF) teamed up to fund MARGINS, launched in 2000. Its Advertising success led to a 10-year successor program called Geodynamic Processes at Rifting and Sub- Display Advertising Steve West ducting Margins, or GeoPRISMS. This issue of Eos looks at these impressive initiatives as they [email protected] come to a close this year. Recruitment Advertising [email protected] Anaïs Férot, the GeoPRISMS science coordinator at NSF, writes more about this history on Science Advisers page 20. Over these few decades, the programs have developed not only a successful model Geomagnetism, Paleomagnetism, Julie Bowles for producing good science but one that produces good scientists. The community made a ded- and Electromagnetism icated effort to support early-career and diverse researchers and regularly participated in edu- Space Physics and Aeronomy Christina M. S. Cohen Cryosphere Ellyn Enderlin cation and outreach through initiatives like the GeoPRISMS Distinguished Lectureship Pro- Study of the Earth’s Deep Interior Edward J. Garnero gram, sending speakers to colleges, museums, and other public venues. Geodesy Brian C. Gunter Férot connected us with the scientists featured in this issue who have provided just a small History of Geophysics Kristine C. Harper glimpse into the volume of research GeoPRISMS has produced. On page 22, Noel Bartlow and Planetary Sciences Sarah M. Hörst Natural Hazards Michelle Hummel colleagues take us on a world tour of the “Slipping and Locking in Earth’s Earthquake Facto- Volcanology, Geochemistry, and Petrology Emily R. Johnson ries,” from the Nankai Trough off southwestern Japan to the Middle America Trench beneath Societal Impacts and Policy Sciences Christine Kirchhoff Costa Rica and several others. Bartlow et al. describe what the differences and commonalities Seismology Keith D. Koper Tectonophysics Jian Lin between these locations tell us about earthquake processes and how new studies can continue Near-Surface Geophysics Juan Lorenzo this work started by MARGINS and GeoPRISMS. Earth and Space Science Informatics Kirk Martinez We switch from movement of the ground to movement of water and gases with James D. Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology Figen Mekik Mineral and Rock Physics Sébastien Merkel Muirhead and colleagues in “Earth’s Volatile Balancing Act,” page 28. Understanding how Ocean Sciences Jerry L. Miller carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and water circulate between the ocean, atmosphere, and min- Global Environmental Change Hansi Singh erals in Earth gives us crucial information about the planet’s tectonic and volcanic processes Education Eric M. Riggs Hydrology Kerstin Stahl and our climate. Finally, on page 34, Lindsay L. Worthington and colleagues describe the long— Tectonophysics Carol A. Stein much longer than previously thought—process it took for Africa and North America to split. Atmospheric Sciences Mika Tosca Thanks also go to Michelle Coombs, with the Volcano Science Center at the U.S. Geological Nonlinear Geophysics Adrian Tuck Biogeosciences Merritt Turetsky Survey, who let us use her photo of lava flow on Kanaga Island in Alaska for our cover. Her Hydrology Adam S. Ward image won first place in 2017 in an annual photo contest held by the GeoPRISMS program. Diversity and Inclusion Lisa D. White Do you have an amazing photo from the field or lab? Send it to us at bit.ly/Eos - postcard, Earth and Planetary Surface Processes Andrew C. Wilcox and we may feature it in Postcards from the Field. Usually, you’ll find these beautiful contribu- Atmospheric and Space Electricity Yoav Yair GeoHealth Ben Zaitchik tions on our final page, but in this issue we are very excited to bring you another crossword puzzle—fitting in with our theme of geoprocesses—by Russ Colson, Minnesota State Univer- ©2021. AGU. All Rights Reserved. Material in this issue may be photocopied by sity Moorhead. Enjoy! individual scientists for research or classroom use. Permission is also granted to use short quotes, figures, and tables for publication in scientific books and journals. For permission for any other uses, contact the AGU Publications Office. Eos (ISSN 0096-3941) is published monthly by AGU, 2000 Florida Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20009, USA. Periodical Class postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Member Service Center, 2000 Florida Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20009, USA Member Service Center: 8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. Eastern time; Tel: +1-202-462-6900; Fax: +1-202-328-0566; Tel. orders in U.S.: 1-800-966-2481; [email protected]. Submit your article proposal or suggest a news story to Eos at bit.ly/Eos-proposal. Heather Goss, Editor in Chief Views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect official positions of AGU unless expressly stated. Randy Fiser, Executive Director/CEO SCIENCE NEWS BY AGU // Eos.org 1 CONTENT 28 22 34 Features 22 Slipping and Locking in 28 Earth’s Volatile Balancing Act Earth’s Earthquake Factories By James D. Muirhead et al. By Noel Bartlow et al. The cycle of gases through the ground, air, and oceans is a journey scientists are more clearly understanding. Five subduction zones and what we’ve learned there about slow-slip behavior. 34 Breaking Up Is Hard to Do, On the Cover Especially for Continents Blocky lava flow leads back to Kanaga Volcano on Kanaga By Lindsay L. Worthington et al. Island, part of the Aleutian Arc. The Alaska–Aleutian What exactly happened to Pangea to make it split? subduction zone is one of five primary sites studied under the GeoPRISMS science plan. Credit: M. L. Coombs/Alaska Volcano Observatory/USGS 2 Eos // APRIL 2021 CONTENT 6 44 Columns From the Editor Research Spotlight 1 Crossing the Shoreline 41 How Some Trees Survive the Summer Dry Season | A Global Look at Surface Soil Organic Carbon News 42 Determining Dissolved Organic Carbon Flows into the Gulf of Alaska | Researchers Unearth Bedrock 4 Coastal Erosion by Waves Versus Rainfall Carbon and Water Dynamics 5 Dust on the Wind 43 Juno Maps Water Ice Across Northern Ganymede | 6 Sooty Layers in Stalagmites Record Human Activity Untangling Drivers of Ancient Hurricane Activity in Caves 44 Can Satellites Fill Gaps in Agricultural Water 7 How Geodynamo Models Churn the Outer Core Monitoring? | A Thirstier Atmosphere Will Increase 8 Finding “Glocal” Solutions to Flooding Problems Wildfire Risk out West 9 More Acidic Water Might Supercharge Lightning 11 Drought, Not War, Felled Some Ancient Asian Editors’ Highlights Civilizations 12 An Asteroid “Double Disaster” Struck Germany 45 Water Stress Controls the Capacity of the Terrestrial in the Miocene Carbon Sink | Going Down: How Do Cities Carry That Weight? 13 Trees That Live Fast, Die Young, and Mess with Climate Models 14 Tree Rings Reveal How Ancient Forests Were Managed Positions Available 15 The Influence of Tidal Forces Extends to the Arctic’s 46 Current job openings in the Earth and space sciences Deep Sea 16 This Search for Alien Life Starts with Destroying Crossword Puzzle Bacteria on Earth 17 Terrestrial Plants Flourished after the Cretaceous- 48 Geoprocesses Paleogene Extinction Opinion 18 Student-Led Diversity Audits: A Strategy for Change 20 GeoPRISMS: A Successful Model for Interdisciplinary Research AmericanGeophysicalUnion @AGU_Eos company/american-geophysical-union AGUvideos americangeophysicalunion americangeophysicalunion SCIENCE NEWS BY AGU // Eos.org 3 NEWS Coastal Erosion by Waves Versus Rainfall oastal cliffs are vulnerable to erosion, that change regularly, like beaches and cliffs, ing for decades in our field. And one of the and multiple serious collapses have it really pays off to measure them fre- neat things about it is that it showed it’s not Coccurred in California in recent years. quently,” explained Jonathan Warrick, a an either-or question. It’s not a question Scientists have succeeded in quantifying and research geologist with the U.S. Geological about whether it’s waves or hydrology [erod- separating erosional effects caused by ocean Survey who was not part of the new study. ing a cliff]. These two dominant processes are waves from erosion due to rainfall. The team This problem with seasonal timescales is par- working together.” conducted more than 150 lidar surveys of the ticularly relevant in places like Southern Cal- study site in Del Mar over a 3- year period.