Search results (30)
« Back to NewsNew study reveals the earliest evidence of fruit-eating by birds
16 August 2022
The earliest-known fruit-eating bird was an early bird called Jeholornis that lived 120 million years ago, and it may have helped contribute to the spread of the plants that dominate the world today.
Studying past climate fluctuations shows how human-generated atmospheric CO2 is impacting natural climate rhythms
20 July 2022
Professor Rosalind Rickaby, Chair of Geology in the Department of Earth Sciences, takes a look at the way climate has naturally fluctuated over geological time, and compares that with the situation we face today, where climate change is disrupting this natural order and posing significant challenges such as extreme heatwaves.
Earth scientists reveal ancient salamander hidden inside mystery rock for 50 years
15 July 2022
Earth sciences Research The Conversation Zoology
A collaboration between Earth Sciences palaeobiologists from the University of Oxford and University College London has shed new light on one of the earliest-known salamanders, from a rock first discovered in the 1970s.
Jurassic World Dominion: a palaeontologist on what the film gets wrong about dinosaurs
14 June 2022
Earth sciences The Conversation
Ben Igielman, DPhil student in palaeontology in the Department of Earth Sciences, writes about the new Jurassic World film in an article first published on the Conversation.
Seven MPLS researchers elected to the Royal Society
10 May 2022
Award Biology Chemistry Earth sciences Maths Physics Zoology
In all, eight scientists from the University of Oxford have joined the Royal Society as Fellows. All but one are from departments in MPLS Division.
New study finds giant predatory dinosaurs could hunt underwater
25 March 2022
New research by a multi-institution team including the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge has found strong evidence that dinosaurs from the spinosaurid family swam underwater to search for prey.
Three University of Oxford Earth Scientists honoured with the title of Geochemistry Fellow
15 February 2022
Professor Chris Ballentine, Professor Tamsin Mather and Professor Gideon Henderson join 13 other geochemists receiving the fellowship this year from the Geochemical Society and the European Association of Geochemistry. The award was established in 1996 to honour outstanding scientists who have, over some years, made a major contribution to the field.
Seismometer technology field-tested in Antarctica before space missions
10 February 2022
Earth sciences Physics Research Space
Scientists from the University of Oxford are field-testing seismic sensors in the bitter conditions of Antarctica to simulate the solar system’s icy moons.
Oxford Earth Scientist honoured in the annual Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists
19 January 2022
Associate Professor of Palaeobiology, Erin Saupe, is one of 9 UK recipients of the 2022 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, in recognition of her work using the fossil record to understand how species respond to environmental changes over both long and short timescales.
7 attributes for a successful Net Zero
5 January 2022
Climate Earth sciences Research
A new Nature Climate Change paper highlights the urgency of emission reductions and emphasises the need for social and environmental integrity. There are clear risks of getting net zero wrong. If interpreted right and governed well, net zero can be an effective frame of reference for climate action.
Safer carbon capture and storage
23 December 2021
Climate Earth sciences Research
Depleted oil fields are one of the targets for carbon dioxide burial and related technology development. New research from the Department of Earth Sciences, published in Nature, shows that subsurface microbial activity may make this type of carbon burial target more complex than originally thought.
Iron integral to the development of life on Earth – and the possibility of life on other planets
7 December 2021
Researchers at the University of Oxford uncover the importance of iron for the development of complex life on Earth – which also may hint at the likelihood of complex life on other planets.
Life on Mars search could be misled by false fossils
19 November 2021
Mars explorers searching for signs of ancient life could be fooled by fossil-like specimens created by chemical processes, research suggests.
Six early career Oxford academics win £100,000 Philip Leverhulme prizes
18 October 2021
Six young academics from across the University of Oxford have today been given Philip Leverhulme prizes – the largest number awarded to researchers of any university.
Turing Fellowships for over 30 Oxford academics
30 September 2021
AI and data science Award Computer science Earth sciences Engineering Maths Statistics
Thirty-three University of Oxford researchers have been named Turing Fellows for the 2021/22 academic year. 23 of the fellows come from MPLS departments.
Apollo 17 mission helps Oxford research the shape of the Moons magnetic field
28 September 2021
Rock samples collected during the final manned mission to the Moon have turned out to be critical for a study nearly 50 years later.
CO2 removal is essential to achieving net zero
23 September 2021
Biology Climate Earth sciences Physics Zoology
An article by Dr Steve Smith, executive director of the Oxford Net Zero Initiative and the CO2RE hub, which is focussed on greenhouse gas removal.
Oxford scientists show how green mining could pave the way to net zero and provide the metals we need for a sustainable future
30 June 2021
Earth sciences Research Sustainability & the environment
Scientists from the Department of Earth Sciences demonstrate how it is possible to directly extract valuable metals from hot salty fluids (‘brines’) trapped in porous rocks at depths of around 2km below dormant volcanoes.
UK–Canada collaboration uses geology to help astronomers find habitable planets
14 May 2021
Earth sciences Physics Research Space
To date, astronomers have identified more than 4,000 confirmed exoplanets but only a fraction have the potential to sustain life. Now, new research is using the geology of early planet formation to help identify those that may be capable of supporting life.
From The Conversation: Nocturnal dinosaurs: Night vision and superb hearing in a small theropod suggest it was a moonlight predator
7 May 2021
Roger Benson, Professor of Palaeobiology in the Department of Earth Sciences, and colleagues Lars Schmitz at Scripps College and Jonah Choiniere at the University of the Witwatersrand write about their new research into nocturnal dinosaurs.