J. Brian Balta
@drjbbalta.bsky.social
Planetary Scientist and Petrologist, dog parent.
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Paleoclimatologist Jessica Tierney recently published a global temperature record covering almost the past half-billion years. According to her model, 50 million years ago, inland temperatures approached 122 degrees Fahrenheit. www.quantamagazine.org/climate-extr...
December 29, 2025 at 9:04 PM
Paleoclimatologist Jessica Tierney recently published a global temperature record covering almost the past half-billion years. According to her model, 50 million years ago, inland temperatures approached 122 degrees Fahrenheit. www.quantamagazine.org/climate-extr...
Ah the traditional fireworks holiday of December 27. Sorry dogs, everyone knows the 10 straight days of fireworks are totally necessary. How else would one celebrate December 27?
December 28, 2025 at 2:02 AM
Ah the traditional fireworks holiday of December 27. Sorry dogs, everyone knows the 10 straight days of fireworks are totally necessary. How else would one celebrate December 27?
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Shale drillers have turned the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico into a pressure cooker that is literally bursting at the seams.
America’s Biggest Oil Field Is Turning Into a Pressure Cooker
Drillers’ injection of wastewater is creating mayhem across the Permian Basin, raising concern about the future of fossil-fuel production there.
on.wsj.com
December 26, 2025 at 11:27 AM
Shale drillers have turned the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico into a pressure cooker that is literally bursting at the seams.
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Gift article for y’all
Overlooked No More: Inge Lehmann, Who Discovered the Earth’s Inner Core
Overlooked No More: Inge Lehmann, Who Discovered the Earth’s Inner Core
Overlooked No More: Inge Lehmann, Who Discovered the Earth’s Inner Core
www.nytimes.com
December 22, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Gift article for y’all
Overlooked No More: Inge Lehmann, Who Discovered the Earth’s Inner Core
Overlooked No More: Inge Lehmann, Who Discovered the Earth’s Inner Core
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Global warming broke time keeping? 😬
The atomic ensemble time scale at the NIST Boulder campus has failed.
December 20, 2025 at 11:59 PM
Global warming broke time keeping? 😬
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
University of Alaska funds tsunami detections station through January as federal funding remains uncertain 👉 https://tinyurl.com/43s4ptss
December 20, 2025 at 5:03 AM
University of Alaska funds tsunami detections station through January as federal funding remains uncertain 👉 https://tinyurl.com/43s4ptss
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
The US East Coast - one of the places that ice lost from Greenland ends up. Counterintuitively, places far from where land ice is lost are most impacted by the resulting sea level rise.
The drumbeat remains - mitigation + adaptation.
The drumbeat remains - mitigation + adaptation.
'Another unoccupied house collapsed into the ocean along North Carolina's Outer Banks on Saturday night. It's the 11th house to collapse since mid-September.
In total, 22 homes have collapsed into the ocean in the area since 2020.'
via AccuWeather [X] #ClimateCrisis #SeaLevel
In total, 22 homes have collapsed into the ocean in the area since 2020.'
via AccuWeather [X] #ClimateCrisis #SeaLevel
October 21, 2025 at 7:28 PM
The US East Coast - one of the places that ice lost from Greenland ends up. Counterintuitively, places far from where land ice is lost are most impacted by the resulting sea level rise.
The drumbeat remains - mitigation + adaptation.
The drumbeat remains - mitigation + adaptation.
Maybe not the most important part of this...but 10,000 people missing from #AGU25 - the registration fee is $400 for Grad Students and $800 for members. That's got to blow a $6 million hole in the AGU budget?
And a $10 million revenue drop for New Orleans? Maybe more?
And a $10 million revenue drop for New Orleans? Maybe more?
Attendance at US-based science conferences is bouncing around this year but generally down. #AGU25 has ~10k fewer this year! I explored these trends for @nature.com — including solutions to keep conferences local & productive:
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
🧪
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
🧪
Scientists skip key US meetings — and seize on smaller alternatives
Researchers are devising creative ways to get together as Trump’s policies curb travel to US gatherings.
www.nature.com
December 16, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Maybe not the most important part of this...but 10,000 people missing from #AGU25 - the registration fee is $400 for Grad Students and $800 for members. That's got to blow a $6 million hole in the AGU budget?
And a $10 million revenue drop for New Orleans? Maybe more?
And a $10 million revenue drop for New Orleans? Maybe more?
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
On FB, Yukon Geological Survey posted some spectacular photos of landslides & snow avalanches triggered by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake on Dec 6 in the St Elias Mountains. Here are some of my favs. @geocron.bsky.social @theronfinley.bsky.social @davepetley.bsky.social @ksvenenvig.bsky.social 🧪⚒️
December 15, 2025 at 10:44 PM
On FB, Yukon Geological Survey posted some spectacular photos of landslides & snow avalanches triggered by the magnitude 7.0 earthquake on Dec 6 in the St Elias Mountains. Here are some of my favs. @geocron.bsky.social @theronfinley.bsky.social @davepetley.bsky.social @ksvenenvig.bsky.social 🧪⚒️
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Rivers on ancient Mars didn't work like terrestrial rivers do. In the absence of plate tectonics to make mountain belts, most of their drainage systems were much smaller and local, and even the large ones cover less relative area than equivalent systems on Earth. 🧪
Link: www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
Link: www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
December 13, 2025 at 9:18 AM
Rivers on ancient Mars didn't work like terrestrial rivers do. In the absence of plate tectonics to make mountain belts, most of their drainage systems were much smaller and local, and even the large ones cover less relative area than equivalent systems on Earth. 🧪
Link: www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
Link: www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
STUDYING CHONDRITIC #METEORITES WE TRAVEL BACK IN TIME to the first stages in Solar System formation. In fact, undifferentiated asteroids formed 4.5 Gyrs ago & never melted, being the parent bodies of #chondrites. I'm briefly introducing you to these rocks made of chondrules
vm.tiktok.com/ZNRNgLwep/
vm.tiktok.com/ZNRNgLwep/
December 12, 2025 at 2:04 PM
STUDYING CHONDRITIC #METEORITES WE TRAVEL BACK IN TIME to the first stages in Solar System formation. In fact, undifferentiated asteroids formed 4.5 Gyrs ago & never melted, being the parent bodies of #chondrites. I'm briefly introducing you to these rocks made of chondrules
vm.tiktok.com/ZNRNgLwep/
vm.tiktok.com/ZNRNgLwep/
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
This appears to be a big day for having to explain the equilibrium temperature of an object at the Earth's distance from the Sun.
(It is 255 K for albedo 0.294, and there is no way around that.)
(It is 255 K for albedo 0.294, and there is no way around that.)
December 11, 2025 at 6:25 PM
This appears to be a big day for having to explain the equilibrium temperature of an object at the Earth's distance from the Sun.
(It is 255 K for albedo 0.294, and there is no way around that.)
(It is 255 K for albedo 0.294, and there is no way around that.)
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
I'll be honest, as an Indiana alum, I have no idea what I just watched. My reaction is simply confusion. Anyway...time to star making a float out of...Roses...
#IUFB
#IUFB
December 7, 2025 at 4:39 AM
I'll be honest, as an Indiana alum, I have no idea what I just watched. My reaction is simply confusion. Anyway...time to star making a float out of...Roses...
#IUFB
#IUFB
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
A small slab of the ancient ocean floor, as found in Ohio. There were so many of these at this site! #fossilhunting
December 7, 2025 at 12:06 AM
A small slab of the ancient ocean floor, as found in Ohio. There were so many of these at this site! #fossilhunting
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Y'all the latest episode of the #Kilauea #eruption just went CRAZY. It looks like pressure built up enough to explode out the ground around the two existing vents (first few seconds), leading to a massive surge in lava fountaining.🌋🤯
USGS Live stream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiyt...
USGS Live stream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiyt...
December 6, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Y'all the latest episode of the #Kilauea #eruption just went CRAZY. It looks like pressure built up enough to explode out the ground around the two existing vents (first few seconds), leading to a massive surge in lava fountaining.🌋🤯
USGS Live stream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiyt...
USGS Live stream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiyt...
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Texas had it's warmest Fall on record. This data goes back to 1940, but 2025 also beats 1931 quite easily. I used metric units along the y-axis to confuse Texans.
December 5, 2025 at 3:53 AM
Texas had it's warmest Fall on record. This data goes back to 1940, but 2025 also beats 1931 quite easily. I used metric units along the y-axis to confuse Texans.
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Progressive Marin County is already in the future
AFP’s Josh Edelson photographs vehicles navigating roadways flooded with ocean water during a “King Tide” event in Mill Valley, California.
"King Tides" occur when the Earth, moon, and sun align to produce unusually high water levels, cause tidal flooding
"King Tides" occur when the Earth, moon, and sun align to produce unusually high water levels, cause tidal flooding
December 5, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Progressive Marin County is already in the future
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
The Bay took over the highway during this morning's #KingTides in Marin.
December 4, 2025 at 10:25 PM
The Bay took over the highway during this morning's #KingTides in Marin.
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
BGS scientists have gained access to ‘once in a lifetime’ core from Great Glen Fault.
The core provides a cross-section through the UK’s largest fault zone, offering a rare insight into the formation of the Scottish Highlands.
More:
www.bgs.ac.uk/news/scienti...
The core provides a cross-section through the UK’s largest fault zone, offering a rare insight into the formation of the Scottish Highlands.
More:
www.bgs.ac.uk/news/scienti...
December 1, 2025 at 4:31 PM
BGS scientists have gained access to ‘once in a lifetime’ core from Great Glen Fault.
The core provides a cross-section through the UK’s largest fault zone, offering a rare insight into the formation of the Scottish Highlands.
More:
www.bgs.ac.uk/news/scienti...
The core provides a cross-section through the UK’s largest fault zone, offering a rare insight into the formation of the Scottish Highlands.
More:
www.bgs.ac.uk/news/scienti...
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
This is the point:
“Displaying the probability of a specific home flooding this year or within the next five years can have a significant impact on the perceived desirability of that property,” said Art Carter [CRLS CEO]
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
“Displaying the probability of a specific home flooding this year or within the next five years can have a significant impact on the perceived desirability of that property,” said Art Carter [CRLS CEO]
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
Zillow Removes Climate Risk Scores From Home Listings
www.nytimes.com
November 30, 2025 at 1:51 PM
This is the point:
“Displaying the probability of a specific home flooding this year or within the next five years can have a significant impact on the perceived desirability of that property,” said Art Carter [CRLS CEO]
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
“Displaying the probability of a specific home flooding this year or within the next five years can have a significant impact on the perceived desirability of that property,” said Art Carter [CRLS CEO]
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/30/c...
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Cobble-sized rocks fill hard sandstone conglomerate that makes up the Carmelo Formation near Monterey, CA. This was once a deep underwater canyon that collected river rocks that came down from the ancestral Sierra Nevadas.
flic.kr/p/2rHYsFD
flic.kr/p/2rHXTZ9
flic.kr/p/2rHXTYC
flic.kr/p/2rHYsEM
flic.kr/p/2rHYsFD
flic.kr/p/2rHXTZ9
flic.kr/p/2rHXTYC
flic.kr/p/2rHYsEM
November 30, 2025 at 12:52 AM
Cobble-sized rocks fill hard sandstone conglomerate that makes up the Carmelo Formation near Monterey, CA. This was once a deep underwater canyon that collected river rocks that came down from the ancestral Sierra Nevadas.
flic.kr/p/2rHYsFD
flic.kr/p/2rHXTZ9
flic.kr/p/2rHXTYC
flic.kr/p/2rHYsEM
flic.kr/p/2rHYsFD
flic.kr/p/2rHXTZ9
flic.kr/p/2rHXTYC
flic.kr/p/2rHYsEM
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
Thanksgiving... Where we give thanks to the Chicxulub meteorite for freeing us of husbands of millennia of oppression by killing and roasting a dinosaur
November 27, 2025 at 7:19 PM
Thanksgiving... Where we give thanks to the Chicxulub meteorite for freeing us of husbands of millennia of oppression by killing and roasting a dinosaur
Reposted by J. Brian Balta
The #HayliGubbi eruption came after a period of unrest that started in June-July 2025 with a large dike intrusion in the southern sector of the Erta Ale rift. Our InSAR study will be out soon but you can have a summary at the link below. @earth-science.bsky.social #geoscience
Basaltic dike in Erta Ale triggers explosive eruption in Hayli Gubbi. Read our new paper!
www.frontiersin.org/journals/ear...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/ear...
Frontiers | Segmented dike intrusion linked to multi-level magma storage during and before the 2025 eruption at Erta Ale (East Africa)
Dike intrusions can assist continental rifting and plate divergence. However, our understanding of the magma dynamics during diking and the architecture of t...
www.frontiersin.org
November 25, 2025 at 4:11 AM
The #HayliGubbi eruption came after a period of unrest that started in June-July 2025 with a large dike intrusion in the southern sector of the Erta Ale rift. Our InSAR study will be out soon but you can have a summary at the link below. @earth-science.bsky.social #geoscience