The present solid Earth is actually active, with new plates generating in the mid-ocean ridges and some old plates sinking back into the interior through subduction zones. Subduction is thus a key ...

Subduction zones have recurrently formed on Earth. Previous studies have, however, suggested that they are unlikely to start in the interior of a pristine ocean. Instead, they seem to be more likely ...

One longstanding enigma in geology is how one tectonic plate can break Earth's rock-hard shell and begin diving under another in the process known as subduction. "We now know how subduction nucleated ...

Our planet's lithosphere is broken into several tectonic plates. Their configuration is ever-shifting, as supercontinents are assembled and broken up, and oceans form, grow, and then start to close in ...

Subduction initiation is a pivotal process in the Wilson cycle, yet its mechanisms remain elusive. Using 3D coupled thermo-mechanical and surface processes models, we investigated how the duration of ...

The initiation of plate subduction on Earth may occur before 3 billion years ago or even Hadean. Subduction is the core process of plate tectonics, which gradually lead to the co-evolution of ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. David Bressan is a geologist who covers curiosities about Earth. Oct 29, 2025, 03:16pm EDT Nov 01, 2025, 01:11pm EDT For the first ...

Several billion-year-old rocks tell the story of the planet’s transition from alien landscape to one of continents, oceans, and ultimately life A new study from scientists at Scripps Institution of ...

Geoscientists have discovered a new process in plate tectonics which shows that tremendous damage occurs to areas of Earth's crust long before it should be geologically altered by known plate-boundary ...

The Atlantic Ocean may begin to shrink, said a new study published in the journal Geology. Oceans are not necessarily a permanent fixture on Earth, as they are able to appear and close due to the work ...

Understanding the origins of the Ring of Fire, the most seismically active place on Earth, is famously difficult as geologic evidence is destroyed in the process. Now a new study suggests that ...

Map highlighting the Atlantic subduction zones, the fully developed Lesser Antilles and Scotia arcs on the western side and the incipient Gibraltar arc on the eastern side. From Duarte et al., 2018.