Articles | Volume 12, issue 11
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2615-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2615-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
23 Nov 2021
Research article |
| 23 Nov 2021
| 23 Nov 2021
Miocene high elevation in the Central Alps
Emilija Krsnik
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), 60325 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Institute of Geosciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Katharina Methner
Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), 60325 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Department of Geological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
Marion Campani
Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), 60325 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Svetlana Botsyun
Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
Sebastian G. Mutz
Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
Todd A. Ehlers
Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
Oliver Kempf
Federal Office of Topography swisstopo, Geologische Landesaufnahme, Wabern, 3084, Switzerland
Jens Fiebig
Institute of Geosciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Fritz Schlunegger
Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, 3012, Switzerland
Andreas Mulch
Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), 60325 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
Institute of Geosciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt (Main), Germany
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Maud J. M. Meijers, Tamás Mikes, Bora Rojay, H. Evren Çubukçu, Erkan Aydar, Tina Lüdecke, and Andreas Mulch
Clim. Past, 22, 975–988, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-22-975-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-22-975-2026, 2026
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We present a new stable carbon isotope dataset from Anatolian Late Miocene to Holocene soil carbonates, which reveals that C4 grasslands emerged during Late Miocene Cooling. Uniquely, Anatolia saw a persistent return to C3 vegetation in the Early Pliocene, which impacted mammal populations. We link the return to C3 vegetation to changes in rainfall seasonality, thereby tying ecosystem responses to climatic shifts in a hotspot of projected anthropogenic climatic change.
Christoph Glotzbach, Alexander Neely, and Todd Ehlers
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1552, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1552, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Geochronology (GChron).
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We present a simple, robust method for triple dating (U–Pb, fission track, and in-situ (U–Th)/He) of apatite using Teflon mounts. The approach increases analytical throughput and ensures data quality via a decision matrix. Validation with Durango apatite and application to the Odenwald demonstrates its reliability and the ability to resolve complex thermal histories.
David Mair, Guillaume Witz, Ariel Do Prado, Philippos Garefalakis, Amanda Wild, Fanny Ville, Bennet Schuster, Michael Horn, Jürgen Österle, Stefano C. Fabbri, Camille Litty, Stefan Achleitner, Sebastian Leistner, Clemens Hiller, and Fritz Schlunegger
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-6346, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-6346, 2026
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This study introduces an image analysis framework for automatically identifying and measuring sediment grains in various types of images and scans. We employ a high-performing segmentation approach for a wide range of geoscience data, using carefully curated ground truth data. The method achieves higher accuracy and more consistent measurements than existing approaches. The data and algorithm are openly available and provided in a user-friendly way.
Chantal Schmidt, David Mair, Naki Akçar, Marcus Christl, Negar Haghipour, Christof Vockenhuber, Philip Gautschi, Brian McArdell, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 14, 33–53, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-14-33-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-14-33-2026, 2026
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Our study examines erosion in a small, pre-Alpine basin by using cosmogenic nuclides in river sediments. Based on a dense measuring network we were able to distinguish two main zones: an upper zone with slow erosion of surface material, and a steeper, lower zone where faster erosion is driven by landslides. The data suggests that sediment has been constantly produced over thousands of years, indicating a stable, long-term balance between contrasting erosion processes.
Nahin Rezwan, David Mair, Alexander C. Whittaker, Fritz Schlunegger, Ariel Henrique do Prado, and Sadia Hossain Setu
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5145, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-5145, 2025
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We used drone imagery and machine learning to track how floods reshape gravel bars in a Swiss river. By analysing over a million grains, we found that even moderate floods can move large areas of sediment and reshape riverbeds. The study shows how detailed mapping helps explain how frequent floods influence river change under future climate scenarios.
Mirjam Schaller, Daniel Peifer, Alexander B. Neely, Thomas Bernard, Christoph Glotzbach, Alexander R. Beer, and Todd A. Ehlers
Earth Surf. Dynam., 13, 571–591, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-571-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-13-571-2025, 2025
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This study reports chemical weathering, physical erosion, and denudation rates from river load data in the Swabian Alb, southwestern Germany. Tributaries to the Neckar River draining to the north show higher rates than tributaries draining to the southeast into the Danube River, causing a retreat of the Swabian Alb escarpment. Observations are discussed in light of anthropogenic impact, lithology, and topography. The data are further compared to other rates over space and time and to global data.
Armelle Ballian, Maud J. M. Meijers, Isabelle Cojan, Damien Huyghe, Miguel Bernecker, Katharina Methner, Mattia Tagliavento, Jens Fiebig, and Andreas Mulch
Clim. Past, 21, 841–856, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-841-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-21-841-2025, 2025
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During the Middle Miocene, the Earth transitioned from a warm to a colder period, significantly impacting ecosystems and climate. We present a 23–13 Ma climate record of soil carbonates from a northern Mediterranean basin. We propose that rapid temperature shifts in our data result from changes in atmospheric circulation patterns. Our climate record aligns well with contemporaneous terrestrial European and global marine records, enhancing our understanding of Miocene climate dynamics.
Christoph Glotzbach and Todd A. Ehlers
Geochronology, 6, 697–717, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-697-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-6-697-2024, 2024
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The (U–Th–Sm) / He dating method helps understand the cooling history of rocks. Synthetic modelling experiments were conducted to explore factors affecting in situ vs. whole-grain (U–Th) / He dates. In situ dates are often 30 % older than whole-grain dates, whereas very rapid cooling makes helium loss negligible, resulting in similar whole-grain and in situ dates. In addition, in situ data can reveal cooling histories even from a single grain by measuring helium distributions.
Fritz Schlunegger, Edi Kissling, Dimitri Tibo Bandou, Guilhem Amin Douillet, David Mair, Urs Marti, Regina Reber, Patrick Schläfli, and Michael Alfred Schwenk
Earth Surf. Dynam., 12, 1371–1389, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1371-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-12-1371-2024, 2024
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Overdeepenings are bedrock depressions filled with sediment. We combine the results of a gravity survey with drilling data to explore the morphology of such a depression beneath the city of Bern. We find that the target overdeepening comprises two basins >200 m deep. They are separated by a bedrock riegel that itself is cut by narrow canyons up to 150 m deep. We postulate that these structures formed underneath a glacier, where erosion by subglacial meltwater caused the formation of the canyons.
Renas I. Koshnaw, Jonas Kley, and Fritz Schlunegger
Solid Earth, 15, 1365–1383, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1365-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1365-2024, 2024
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This study investigates how Earth's geodynamic processes shaped the NW Zagros mountain belt in the Middle East. The Neogene foreland basin underwent subsidence due to the load of the surface and the subducting slab and was later influenced by the Neotethys horizontal slab tearing and the associated asthenospheric mantle flow during the Late Miocene and onward.
Veronica Peverelli, Alfons Berger, Martin Wille, Thomas Pettke, Benita Putlitz, Andreas Mulch, Edwin Gnos, and Marco Herwegh
Eur. J. Mineral., 36, 879–898, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-36-879-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-36-879-2024, 2024
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We used U–Pb dating and Pb–Sr–O–H isotopes of hydrothermal epidote to characterize fluid circulation in the Aar Massif (central Swiss Alps). Our data support the hypothesis that Permian fluids exploited syn-rift extensional faults. In the Miocene during the Alpine orogeny, fluid sources were meteoric, sedimentary, and/or metamorphic water. Likely, Miocene shear zones were exploited for fluid circulation, with implications for the Sr isotope budget of the granitoids.
Konstantina Agiadi, Iuliana Vasiliev, Geanina Butiseacă, George Kontakiotis, Danae Thivaiou, Evangelia Besiou, Stergios Zarkogiannis, Efterpi Koskeridou, Assimina Antonarakou, and Andreas Mulch
Biogeosciences, 21, 3869–3881, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3869-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3869-2024, 2024
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Seven million years ago, the marine gateway connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean started to close, and, as a result, water circulation ceased. To find out how this phenomenon affected the fish living in the Mediterranean Sea, we examined the changes in the isotopic composition of otoliths of two common fish species. Although the species living at the surface fared pretty well, the bottom-water fish starved and eventually became extinct in the Mediterranean.
Michael Margreth, Florian Lustenberger, Dorothea Hug Peter, Fritz Schlunegger, and Massimiliano Zappa
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-78, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2024-78, 2024
Publication in NHESS not foreseen
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Recession models (RM) are crucial for observing the low flow behavior of a catchment. We developed two novel RM, which are designed to represent slowly draining catchment conditions. With a newly designed low flow prediction procedure we tested the prediction capability of these two models and three others from literature. One of our novel products delivered the best results, because it best represents the slowly draining catchment conditions.
Daniel Bolliger, Fritz Schlunegger, and Brian W. McArdell
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1035–1049, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1035-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-24-1035-2024, 2024
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We analysed data from the Illgraben debris flow monitoring station, Switzerland, and we modelled these flows with a debris flow runout model. We found that no correlation exists between the grain size distribution, the mineralogical composition of the matrix, and the debris flow properties. The flow properties rather appear to be determined by the flow volume, from which most other parameters can be derived.
Ariel Henrique do Prado, David Mair, Philippos Garefalakis, Chantal Schmidt, Alexander Whittaker, Sebastien Castelltort, and Fritz Schlunegger
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1173–1190, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1173-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1173-2024, 2024
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Engineering structures known as check dams are built with the intention of managing streams. The effectiveness of such structures can be expressed by quantifying the reduction of the sediment flux after their implementation. In this contribution, we estimate and compare the volumes of sediment transported in a mountain stream for engineered and non-engineered conditions. We found that without check dams the mean sediment flux would be ca. 10 times larger in comparison with the current situation.
Daniel Boateng, Sebastian G. Mutz, Armelle Ballian, Maud J. M. Meijers, Katharina Methner, Svetlana Botsyun, Andreas Mulch, and Todd A. Ehlers
Earth Syst. Dynam., 14, 1183–1210, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-14-1183-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-14-1183-2023, 2023
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We present model-based topographic sensitivity experiments that provide valuable constraints for interpreting past proxies and records of climate and tectonic processes. The study uses a climate model to quantify the response of regional climate and oxygen isotopic composition of precipitation to diachronous surface uplift scenarios across the European Alps. The results suggest that isotopic signal changes can be measured in geologic archives using stable isotope paleoaltimetry.
Hemanti Sharma and Todd A. Ehlers
Earth Surf. Dynam., 11, 1161–1181, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1161-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-11-1161-2023, 2023
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Seasonality in precipitation (P) and vegetation (V) influences catchment erosion (E), although which factor plays the dominant role is unclear. In this study, we performed a sensitivity analysis of E to P–V seasonality through numerical modeling. Our results suggest that P variations strongly influence seasonal variations in E, while the effect of seasonal V variations is secondary but significant. This is more pronounced in moderate and least pronounced in extreme environmental settings.
Daniel Boateng and Sebastian G. Mutz
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 6479–6514, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-6479-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-6479-2023, 2023
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We present an open-source Python framework for performing empirical-statistical downscaling of climate information, such as precipitation. The user-friendly package comprises all the downscaling cycles including data preparation, model selection, training, and evaluation, designed in an efficient and flexible manner, allowing for quick and reproducible downscaling products. The framework would contribute to climate change impact assessments by generating accurate high-resolution climate data.
Hemanti Sharma, Sebastian G. Mutz, and Todd A. Ehlers
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 997–1015, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-997-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-997-2022, 2022
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We estimate global changes in frost cracking intensity (FCI) using process-based models for four time slices in the late Cenozoic ranging from the Pliocene (∼ 3 Ma) to pre-industrial (∼ 1850 CE, PI). For all time slices, results indicate that FCI was most prevalent in middle to high latitudes and high-elevation lower-latitude areas such as Tibet. Larger deviations (relative to PI) were observed in colder (LGM) and warmer climates (Pliocene) due to differences in temperature and glaciation.
Olaf Klaus Lenz, Mara Montag, Volker Wilde, Katharina Methner, Walter Riegel, and Andreas Mulch
Clim. Past, 18, 2231–2254, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2231-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-2231-2022, 2022
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We describe different carbon isotope excursions (CIEs) in an upper Paleocene to lower Eocene lignite succession (Schöningen, DE). The combination with a new stratigraphic framework allows for a correlation of distinct CIEs with long- and short-term thermal events of the last natural greenhouse period on Earth. Furthermore, changes in the peat-forming wetland vegetation are correlated with a CIE that can be can be related to the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM).
David Mair, Ariel Henrique Do Prado, Philippos Garefalakis, Alessandro Lechmann, Alexander Whittaker, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 953–973, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-953-2022, 2022
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Grain size data are important for studying and managing rivers, but they are difficult to obtain in the field. Therefore, methods have been developed that use images from small and remotely piloted aircraft. However, uncertainty in grain size data from such image-based products is understudied. Here we present a new way of uncertainty estimation that includes fully modeled errors. We use this technique to assess the effect of several image acquisition aspects on grain size uncertainty.
Michael A. Schwenk, Laura Stutenbecker, Patrick Schläfli, Dimitri Bandou, and Fritz Schlunegger
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 71, 163–190, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-71-163-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-71-163-2022, 2022
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We investigated the origin of glacial sediments in the Bern area to determine their route of transport either with the Aare Glacier or the Valais Glacier. These two ice streams are known to have joined in the Bern area during the last major glaciation (ca. 20 000 years ago). However, little is known about the ice streams prior to this last glaciation. Here we collected evidence that during a glaciation about 250 000 years ago the Aare Glacier dominated the area as documented in the deposits.
Ariel Henrique do Prado, Renato Paes de Almeida, Cristiano Padalino Galeazzi, Victor Sacek, and Fritz Schlunegger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 457–471, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-457-2022, 2022
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Our work is focused on describing how and why the terrace levels of central Amazonia were formed during the last 100 000 years. We propose to address this question through a landscape evolution numerical model. Our results show that terrace levels at lower elevation were established in response to dry–wet climate changes and the older terrace levels at higher elevations most likely formed in response to a previously higher elevation of the regional base level.
Astrid Oetting, Emma C. Smith, Jan Erik Arndt, Boris Dorschel, Reinhard Drews, Todd A. Ehlers, Christoph Gaedicke, Coen Hofstede, Johann P. Klages, Gerhard Kuhn, Astrid Lambrecht, Andreas Läufer, Christoph Mayer, Ralf Tiedemann, Frank Wilhelms, and Olaf Eisen
The Cryosphere, 16, 2051–2066, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2051-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2051-2022, 2022
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This study combines a variety of geophysical measurements in front of and beneath the Ekström Ice Shelf in order to identify and interpret geomorphological evidences of past ice sheet flow, extent and retreat.
The maximal extent of grounded ice in this region was 11 km away from the continental shelf break.
The thickness of palaeo-ice on the calving front around the LGM was estimated to be at least 305 to 320 m.
We provide essential boundary conditions for palaeo-ice-sheet models.
Andrea Madella, Christoph Glotzbach, and Todd A. Ehlers
Geochronology, 4, 177–190, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-177-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-177-2022, 2022
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Cooling ages date the time at which minerals cross a certain isotherm on the way up to Earth's surface. Such ages can be measured from bedrock material and river sand. If spatial variations in bedrock ages are known in a river catchment, the spatial distribution of erosion can be inferred from the distribution of the ages measured from the river sand grains. Here we develop a new tool to help such analyses, with particular emphasis on quantifying uncertainties due to sample size.
Alessandro Lechmann, David Mair, Akitaka Ariga, Tomoko Ariga, Antonio Ereditato, Ryuichi Nishiyama, Ciro Pistillo, Paola Scampoli, Mykhailo Vladymyrov, and Fritz Schlunegger
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 2441–2473, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2441-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2441-2022, 2022
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Muon tomography is a technology that is used often in geoscientific research. The know-how of data analysis is, however, still possessed by physicists who developed this technology. This article aims at providing geoscientists with the necessary tools to perform their own analyses. We hope that a lower threshold to enter the field of muon tomography will allow more geoscientists to engage with muon tomography. SMAUG is set up in a modular way to allow for its own modules to work in between.
Michael A. Schwenk, Patrick Schläfli, Dimitri Bandou, Natacha Gribenski, Guilhem A. Douillet, and Fritz Schlunegger
Sci. Dril., 30, 17–42, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-17-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-17-2022, 2022
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A scientific drilling was conducted into a bedrock trough (overdeepening) in Bern-Bümpliz (Switzerland) in an effort to advance the knowledge of the Quaternary prior to 150 000 years ago. We encountered a 208.5 m-thick succession of loose sediments (gravel, sand and mud) in the retrieved core and identified two major sedimentary sequences (A: lower, B: upper). The sedimentary suite records two glacial advances and the subsequent filling of a lake sometime between 300 000 and 200 000 years ago.
Mirjam Schaller and Todd A. Ehlers
Earth Surf. Dynam., 10, 131–150, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-131-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-10-131-2022, 2022
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Soil production, chemical weathering, and physical erosion rates from the large climate and vegetation gradient of the Chilean Coastal Cordillera (26 to 38° S) are investigated. Rates are generally lowest in the sparsely vegetated and arid north, increase southward toward the Mediterranean climate, and then decrease slightly, or possible stay the same, further south in the temperate humid zone. This trend is compared with global data from similar soil-mantled hillslopes in granitic lithologies.
Renas I. Koshnaw, Fritz Schlunegger, and Daniel F. Stockli
Solid Earth, 12, 2479–2501, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-12-2479-2021, 2021
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As continental plates collide, mountain belts grow. This study investigated the provenance of rocks from the northwestern segment of the Zagros mountain belt to unravel the convergence history of the Arabian and Eurasian plates. Provenance data synthesis and field relationships suggest that the Zagros Mountains developed as a result of the oceanic crust emplacement on the Arabian continental plate, followed by the Arabia–Eurasia collision and later uplift of the broader region.
Kirstin Übernickel, Jaime Pizarro-Araya, Susila Bhagavathula, Leandro Paulino, and Todd A. Ehlers
Biogeosciences, 18, 5573–5594, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5573-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5573-2021, 2021
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Animal burrowing is important because it impacts the physical and chemical evolution of Earth’s surface. However, most studies are species specific, and compilations of animal community effects are missing. We present an inventory of the currently known 390 burrowing species for all of Chile along its climate gradient. We observed increasing amounts of excavated material from an area with dry conditions along a gradient towards more humid conditions.
Sean D. Willett, Frédéric Herman, Matthew Fox, Nadja Stalder, Todd A. Ehlers, Ruohong Jiao, and Rong Yang
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1153–1221, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1153-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1153-2021, 2021
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The cooling climate of the last few million years leading into the ice ages has been linked to increasing erosion rates by glaciers. One of the ways to measure this is through mineral cooling ages. In this paper, we investigate potential bias in these data and the methods used to analyse them. We find that the data are not themselves biased but that appropriate methods must be used. Past studies have used appropriate methods and are sound in methodology.
Hemanti Sharma, Todd A. Ehlers, Christoph Glotzbach, Manuel Schmid, and Katja Tielbörger
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 1045–1072, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1045-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-1045-2021, 2021
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We study effects of variable climate–vegetation with different uplift rates on erosion–sedimentation using a landscape evolution modeling approach. Results suggest that regardless of uplift rates, transients in precipitation–vegetation lead to transients in erosion rates in the same direction of change. Vegetation-dependent erosion and sedimentation are influenced by Milankovitch timescale changes in climate, but these transients are superimposed upon tectonically driven uplift rates.
Nicolai Schleinkofer, David Evans, Max Wisshak, Janina Vanessa Büscher, Jens Fiebig, André Freiwald, Sven Härter, Horst R. Marschall, Silke Voigt, and Jacek Raddatz
Biogeosciences, 18, 4733–4753, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4733-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4733-2021, 2021
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We have measured the chemical composition of the carbonate shells of the parasitic foraminifera Hyrrokkin sarcophaga in order to test if it is influenced by the host organism (bivalve or coral). We find that both the chemical and isotopic composition is influenced by the host organism. For example strontium is enriched in foraminifera that grew on corals, whose skeleton is built from aragonite, which is naturally enriched in strontium compared to the bivalves' calcite shell.
Solmaz Mohadjer, Sebastian G. Mutz, Matthew Kemp, Sophie J. Gill, Anatoly Ischuk, and Todd A. Ehlers
Geosci. Commun., 4, 281–295, https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-4-281-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-4-281-2021, 2021
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Lack of access to science-based natural hazards information impedes the effectiveness of school-based disaster risk reduction education. To address this challenge, we created and classroom tested a series of earthquake education videos that were co-taught by school teachers and Earth scientists in the UK and Tajikistan. Comparison of the results reveals significant differences between students' views on the Earth's interior and why and where earthquakes occur.
Cited articles
Anfinson, O. A., Stockli, D. F., Miller, J. C., Möller, A., and Schlunegger, F.: Tectonic exhumation of the Central Alps recorded by detrital zircon in the Molasse Basin, Switzerland, Solid Earth, 11, 2197–2220, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2197-2020, 2020.
Bauer, K. K., Vennemann, T. W., and Gilg, H. A.: Stable isotope composition of bentonites from the Swiss and Bavarian Freshwater Molasse as a proxy for paleoprecipitation, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 455, 53–64, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.02.002, 2016.
Beaumont, C., Ellis, S., Hamilton, J., and Fullsack, P.: Mechanical model for subduction-collision tectonics of Alpine-type compressional orogens, Geology, 24, 675–678, https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1996)024<0675:MMFSCT>2.3.CO;2, 1996.
Berger, J. P.: Paleontologic de la Molasse de Suisse Occidentale, taxonomic, biostratigraphie, paleoecologie, paleogeographie et paleoclimatologie, Habilitation thesis, Univ. Fribourg, Fribourg, 405 pp., 1992.
Berger, J. P., Reichenbacher, B., Becker, D., Grimm, M., Grimm, K., Picot, L., Storni, A., Pirkenseer, C., and Schaefer, A.: Eocene-Pliocene time scale and stratigraphy of the Upper Rhine Graben (URG) and the Swiss Molasse Basin (SMB), Int. J. Earth Sci., 94, 711–731, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-005-0479-y, 2005.
Bernard, T., Sinclair, H. D., Gailleton, B., and Fox, M.: Formation of Longitudinal River Valleys and the Fixing of Drainage Divides in Response to Exhumation of Crystalline Basement, Geophys. Res. Lett., 48, 1–9, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL092210, 2021.
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Short summary
Here we present new surface elevation constraints for the middle Miocene Central Alps based on stable and clumped isotope geochemical analyses. Our reconstructed paleoelevation estimate is supported by isotope-enabled paleoclimate simulations and indicates that the Miocene Central Alps were characterized by a heterogeneous and spatially transient topography with high elevations locally exceeding 4000 m.
Here we present new surface elevation constraints for the middle Miocene Central Alps based on...
