📄 Category

earth_science

2455 papers

📄 earth science

Source apportionment and health risk assessment of heavy metals in farmland soils based on the APCS-MLR receptor model and Monte Carlo simulation

This study integrates the APCS-MLR receptor model, Monte Carlo simulation, and Sobol sensitivity analysis to identify industrial-traffic and agricultural sources as key contributors to heavy metal contamination in Hetao Plain farmland soils, revealing that arsenic exposure via oral ingestion drives significant carcinogenic risks for children despite generally acceptable non-carcinogenic levels.

Si-Yuan Zhang, Shuai Yuan, Hong-Chao Zhen, Kai-Ning Lv, Jia-Ling Li, Guo-Li Yuan2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Humanity's Future Capacity for Physical Activity Limited by Climate Change and Population Aging

This study projects that humanity's capacity for sustained physical activity will significantly decline over this century due to the combined effects of climate change and population aging, rendering many common work and household tasks unsafe in increasingly frequent heat conditions, particularly for older adults in tropical regions.

Haley Staudmyer, Jennifer K. Vanos, Ollie Jay, Gisel Guzman Echavarria, Qinqin Kong, Yudam Hwang, Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatr (…)2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Forage Fish Polychlorinated Biphenyl Monitoring to Support Sediment Cleanup and Source Control in the Anacostia River Watershed, Washington, DC and Maryland, USA

This study evaluates the use of forage fish (mummichog and banded killifish) as cost-effective bioindicators for monitoring polychlorinated biphenyls in the Anacostia River watershed, identifying Lower Beaverdam Creek as a major PCB source and providing strategic recommendations to support sediment cleanup and source control efforts.

Fred Pinkney, Lance Yonkos, Elgin Perry, Nathalie Lombard, Upal Ghosh2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Accounting for non-equivalence of carbon emissions and removals in meeting national net zero emissions targets in the United Kingdom

Using the UK as a case study, this paper demonstrates that adopting a "geological net zero" framework, which strictly balances fossil emissions with geological-scale carbon storage, could enable the country to reach net zero by 2040 and achieve significant emission reductions compared to current policies, despite the approach's reliance on vulnerable technology and supply chains.

Oliver Broad, Verena Hofbauer, Isabela Butnar, Ingrid Sundvor, Stephanie Loo2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Interfacial-energy-driven ferropericlase rounding leads to bridgmanite-controlled viscosity in the Earth’s lower mantle

Experimental evidence showing that interfacial-energy-driven rounding of ferropericlase grains occurs faster than mantle-flow-induced elongation indicates that the Earth's lower mantle viscosity is controlled by the stronger bridgmanite phase, making it orders of magnitude higher than previously hypothesized.

Amrita Chakraborti, Hongzhan Fei, Yu Nishihara, Marcel Thielmann, Florian Heidelbach, Noriyoshi Tsujino, Artem Chanyshev (…)2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Using aviation fuel hydrogen content to assess contrails and climate impact

This study demonstrates that increasing the hydrogen content in aviation fuel significantly reduces soot and contrail formation, offering a physically grounded strategy to mitigate aviation's climate impact by potentially offsetting 21% of the projected temperature rise from the sector by 2050.

Ziming Wang, Christiane Voigt, Andreas Marsing, Audrey Lecouffe, Marlin Juchem, Greg Smallwood, Simon Kirschler, Dennis (…)2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Landscape Configuration Dynamics Reveal Woody Encroachment and Emerging Human Pressure in the Katavi Heterogeneous Landscape

This study utilizes high-resolution satellite data and landscape metrics to reveal that the Katavi landscape in western Tanzania is undergoing significant woody encroachment and rangeland fragmentation alongside emerging peripheral human pressure, highlighting the critical need for integrated land-use planning that addresses both habitat extent and ecological connectivity.

Joseph O. Ruboha, Michael L. Daud, David J. Kavana, Goodluck S. Melitha, Grace S. Malley2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Approximation of muddiness in troposphere by Multi-Angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) in Caspian Sea and the wastelands of Mazandaran, Iran

This study utilizes Multi-Angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR) data from 2006 to 2030 to analyze the three-dimensional distribution and seasonal persistence of atmospheric turbidity in Iran, revealing that the Caspian Sea and Mazandaran wastelands experience significantly higher turbidity levels compared to the country's arid central and eastern regions.

Kaveh Ostad-Ali-Askari, Amirreza Nemati Mansour, Peiman Kianmehr2026-08-12
📄 earth science

Continental Assembly Selection in Wilson-Cycle Systems: A Projected Topological Free-Energy Framework with Reproducible Evidence Protocol

This paper proposes a topological free-energy framework that models continental assembly within the Wilson cycle as a measurable, falsifiable selection process driven by a gradient of five topology-state coordinates, supported by existing simulation data and a reproducible analysis pipeline, while outlining a future validation protocol using public geological reconstructions.

GuoJun Pan2026-08-12