https://alex-robinson.github.io/feed/Keyword-scored digest of new papers.Wed, 05 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-026-02055-510.1038/s41561-026-02055-5Suning Hou, Alejandra Cartagena-Sierra, Ning Tan, Carolien M. H. van der Weijst, Malte Stockhausen, Fenghao Liu, … (+8)Nature GeoscienceNature Geoscience — matched: Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, overturning circulation, Southern Ocean, Pliocene, proxy, sediment core Nature Geoscience, Published online: 03 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s41561-026-02055-5 Northward movement of the Southern Ocean subtropical front diminished salt transport by Agulhas Leakage in the late Pliocene, although this had no apparent influence on the strength of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, according to proxy records from marine sediment cores.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-026-02054-610.1038/s41561-026-02054-6Angela Zoumplis, Zoltan Füssy, Drishti Kaul, Nicholas Schulte, Hong Zheng, Robert H. Lampe, … (+5)Nature GeoscienceNature Geoscience — matched: subglacial, Antarctic, Antarctica Nature Geoscience, Published online: 03 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s41561-026-02054-6 Eukaryotic microorganisms within a subglacial brine-fed system in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica are largely of marine origin, a legacy of past incursions of seawater into the area, according to RNA sequencing and metatranscriptomic analyses.https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.260889412310.1073/pnas.2608894123Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Jeremy Brooks, Andrew G. Jones, Shaun A. Marcott, Lucas Zoet, Nathaniel A. Lifton, Christian Helanow, … (+1)Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — matched: glacier, millennial-scale, Holocene, proxy, cosmogenic Glaciers play an important role in shaping landscapes because of efficient bedrock erosion at their base. Understanding the contribution of glacial erosion to landscape evolution and the associated feedbacks between climate, erosion, and tectonics requires identifying the factors controlling glacial erosion. However, measuring glacial erosion rates is difficult due to the multifaceted combination of erosional processes occurring in glacial environments. Empirical validation of proposed controls on glacial erosion rates usually rely on indirect measurements of basin-wide sediment yields, which may include remobilized sediment and nonglacial sources of erosion that can obscure the contribution of glacial erosion. Here, we investigate glacial erosion using an alternative proxy: measurements of cosmogenic nuclides in bedrock samples ( n = 28) at a glacier in southeastern Alaska. We leverage the spatial arrangement of paired in situ 14 C- 10 Be measurements in bedrock to simultaneously determine the Holocene history of glacial cover and bedrock erosion rates. Measurements of erosion from a glacial landform suggest that quarrying rates are locally five times greater than abrasion rates. The observed spatial variability in abrasion rates (0.01 to 0.44 mm/y) supported by numerical ice-flow model results suggests that glacial erosion depends on a combination of sliding velocity and basal shear stress (“basal power”). Millennial-scale cosmogenic nuclide-derived erosion rates are an order of magnitude lower than sediment-derived erosion rates, which may suggest that sediment-derived values of bedrock erosion are overestimated due to timescale biases and/or contributions from nonglacial sources of sediment.https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ae93df10.1088/1748-9326/ae93dfMon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Shujing Wang, Yetang Wang, Yulun Zhang, Zhaosheng Zhai, Shugui HouEnvironmental Research LettersEnvironmental Research Letters — matched: ice sheet, Greenland, surface mass balance, predictability Abstract Surface air temperature (SAT) is a key determinant of the surface mass balance of the Greenland Ice Sheet, but its regional disparities, decadal drivers, and seasonally modulated responses remain elusive. Leveraging a novel high-resolution (0.1°×0.1°) station-based reconstruction of SAT over Greenland, this study investigates the SAT variability from 1950 to 2024 and its relationships with the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). We find that annual mean surface temperature decreased significantly from 1950 to the mid-1990s, after which it shifted to a rapid warming, with strong interdecadal variability in all seasons. Spatially, warming has been stronger in northern Greenland than in southern Greenland, and the ablation zone exhibits significant year-round warming. The AMO is the primary driver of decadal‑scale temperature variability, especially in summer, while the PDO modulates this influence most effectively in autumn. Since the late 1990s, the concurrence of a positive AMO and a negative PDO has jointly enhanced anticyclonic conditions over Greenland, driving a sustained warming. These findings significantly improve the predictability of Greenland SAT, thereby supporting more accurate projections of future surface mass balance of the ice sheet.https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2613472123?af=r10.1073/pnas.2613472123?af=rChengzhen ZhouMaodian LiuQianru ZhangNikki H. ZhangXuejun Wangahttps://ror.org/02v51f717Ministry of Education Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes, College of Urban, Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, Chinabhttps://ror.org/02v51f717Institute of Ocean Research, … (+15)PNASPNAS — matched: glacier, Antarctic, sediment core Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 31, August 2026. SignificanceAntarctica is often viewed as remote from industrial pollution, yet we show that the Antarctic Peninsula has become a hotspot of mercury accumulation. By combining geochemical and isotope records from 16 sediment cores with an observation-...https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-02426-310.1038/d41586-026-02426-3Chirantan Chatterjee, Indrajit Adhikari, Benjamin K. SovacoolNatureNature — matched: heat wave Nature, Published online: 04 August 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02426-3 Put health systems at the centre of European heatwave planshttps://doi.org/10.1029/2025jb03357610.1029/2025jb033576Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Jacopo Natale, Stefano VitaleJGR Solid EarthJGR Solid Earth — matched: Holocene, solid earth Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, Volume 131, Issue 8, August 2026.https://doi.org/10.1175/jcli-d-25-0633.110.1175/jcli-d-25-0633.1Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Jeremy Barroll, Ben Livneh, Andrew WintersJournal of ClimateJournal of Climate — matched: snowpack, sea surface temperature, reanalysis Abstract Mountain snowpack in the western US can be difficult to predict multiple months in advance, especially within the Colorado Rocky Mountains, where snowpack prediction varies widely by location and derives little skill from El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Using a high-resolution snow-water equivalent depth (SWE) reanalysis dataset, we investigate how seasonal snowpack prediction using sea surface temperature (SST) in the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans varies across prominent crests and valleys in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Possible atmospheric mechanisms are proposed to explain SST patterns associated with enhanced SWE using self-organizing maps. We find that southern areas of the domain receive significant prediction skill from SSTs within a portion of the tropical North Atlantic, and that this SST pattern is associated with the frequency of surface cyclone passages southwest of the domain. Northern areas, by contrast, receive significant prediction skill from SSTs further north in the North Atlantic—an SST pattern related to the strength of the North Pacific High. Prediction skill increases west to east, where a larger fraction of snow accumulation events coincides with the passage of surface cyclones. A forecast experiment is constructed using December SSTs to predict April 1 SWE, which produces an average correlation of 0.51 between predicted and observed SWE across the domain, and a maximum correlation of 0.75 on the eastern slope of the Colorado Front Range for the years analyzed. This promising result highlights the potential to predict snowpack in small mountain watersheds more accurately, which may benefit water management in these locations.https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2526041123?af=r10.1073/pnas.2526041123?af=rStacy LarochelleKristel ChanardManon DalaisonJérôme FortinRomain JolivetLaurent LonguevergneLuce FleitoutDonald F. ArgusLouis-Marie GauerJean-Philippe Avouacahttps://ror.org/046rm7j60Department of Earth, Planetary, Space Sciences, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095bhttps://ror.org/05dxps055Division of Geological, … (+24)PNASPNAS — matched: irreversible Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Volume 123, Issue 31, August 2026. SignificanceGroundwater extraction can cause both reversible and irreversible ground deformation, with the latter leading to permanent land subsidence and loss of groundwater storage capacity. Satellite observations of land surface deformation reveal that ...https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-22-1441-202610.5194/cp-22-1441-2026Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Konrad Chmist, Garima Singh, Andrzej Araźny, Rajmund Przybylak, Przemysław WyszyńskiClimate of the PastClimate of the Past — matched: Greenland, Arctic The currently observed climate changes are most intense in the Arctic region. This study utilized some of the oldest existing meteorological measurement series in this region. Atmospheric pressure and anemological conditions were analysed and then compared with contemporary measurements. This showed that the weakest low and strongest high systems occur in the same months. Prevailing wind directions have also remained unchanged, while the northerly wind carries less frigid air than in the past.https://doi.org/10.1175/jcli-d-25-0442.110.1175/jcli-d-25-0442.1Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Sarah Henry, Zhuo Wang, Seung‐Ki Min, Hamish RamsayJournal of ClimateJournal of Climate — matched: CMIP, ensemble Abstract To better understand the effects of anthropogenic forcings on tropical cyclone (TC) activity, we investigate the individual impacts of anthropogenic aerosols (AAER), greenhouse gases (GHG), and biomass burning aerosols (BMB) on TC frequency using CESM2 large ensemble simulations. Changes in TC genesis are estimated using a dynamic genesis potential index (DGPI), which reveals distinct impacts from AAER and GHG. Increasing GHG emissions result in a decrease and southward shift in DGPI over the North Atlantic and eastern North Pacific since 1940, whereas the time-dependent AAER emissions lead to a decrease and southward shift in DGPI before 1980s and an increase and northward shift thereafter. In addition, BMB emission increases lead to a slight increase in TC frequency in the North Atlantic. Various dynamic and thermodynamic parameters act cooperatively to change TC frequency associated with GHG and AAER over the North Atlantic, while the increase in DGPI associated with BMB is mainly due to the changes in dynamic variables. AAER effects largely dominate DGPI changes in earlier decades, but GHG effects become increasingly dominant in recent decades. Near-future projections, characterized by continued increases in GHG emissions and steady or declined AAER emissions, suggest decreased DGPI over the North Atlantic and eastern North Pacific driven primarily by GHG forcing. A comparison between DGPI and an alterative, thermodynamic GPI shows similar increases or decreases in TC genesis potential with quantitative differences. However, comparisons between CESM2, CESM1, and six CMIP6 models show considerable inter-model spread in DGPI response, highlighting model uncertainties and the need for caution when applying and interpreting multi-model ensemble means.https://doi.org/10.1029/2026gl12386810.1029/2026gl123868Mon, 03 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000A. Pignalberi, T. AlbertiGeophysical Research LettersGeophysical Research Letters — matched: proxy, climate change Geophysical Research Letters, Volume 53, Issue 15, 16 August 2026.https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2026-54310.5194/essd-2026-543Tue, 04 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Elysee Manimpire Gasana, Annunziata Pirro, Elena Mauri, Riccardo Martellucci, Antonella Gallo, Miroslav Gacic, … (+2)Earth System Science DataEarth System Science Data — matched: ocean circulation, sea level Preprint under review for ESSD (discussion: open, 0 comments) This study presents a new method for estimating the three-dimensional geostrophic currents in the Mediterranean Sea from 10 to 2000 m depth using Argo float observations and satellite sea-level data. The method provides long-term, three-dimensional information on ocean circulation, enabling researchers to better understand climate variability, heat and salt transport, and changes in Mediterranean water masses.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ancene.2026.10056810.1016/j.ancene.2026.100568Fri, 31 Jul 2026 00:00:00 +0000Liqing Xiao, Chenjian He, Hanbiao Xian, Hailong Liu, Xuhui Dong, Yan LiAnthropoceneAnthropocene — matched: sediment corehttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-026-02680-310.1038/s41558-026-02680-3Mike S. Schäfer, Julia MetagNature Climate ChangeNature Climate Change — matched: climate change Nature Climate Change, Published online: 04 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s41558-026-02680-3 Social media have become an important arena for climate change communication. This Review synthesizes climate-related content on social media, its effects on climate attitudes, knowledge and behaviour, and its role in reshaping the broader communication landscape.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-76445-z10.1038/s41467-026-76445-zXingyu Chen, Zhenhang Pu, Hailong He, Liping Ye, Jiuyang Lu, Manzhu Ke, … (+2)Nature CommunicationsNature Communications — matched: higher-order Nature Communications, Published online: 05 August 2026; doi:10.1038/s41467-026-76445-z Higher-order topology has been well established in insulators and semimetals. Here, authors evidence higher-order topology in metallic systems, and unveil a type of topological corner states that are naturally embedded in the bulk continuum with no need for intentional engineering.https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-5759-202610.5194/essd-18-5759-2026Tue, 04 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000Natalia Aleksandrova, Jelmer Veenstra, Sanne MuisEarth System Science DataEarth System Science Data — matched: reanalysis Extreme sea levels during storms can lead to coastal flooding and sediment displacement. In the paper, we present an expanded global dataset of sea levels, produced using a global ocean model driven by ERA5 reanalysis – a state-of-the-art dataset of historical weather and climate. The strengths and limitations of the dataset are discussed by comparing it to observed sea levels. The dataset covers a period of 1950–2024, improving our understanding of the global frequency of extreme water levels.