Department of Earth Sciences

Assistant Professor in Earth Sciences (2 posts)

We are looking to appoint two exceptional and collaborative colleagues as Assistant Professors, with research and teaching interests in any area of Earth Science that complements and builds on our current expertise and interests.

Closes midday on 15 Nov 2018

More details are available here.

(19 Sep 2018)

Excellence in Doctoral Supervision Award

Congratulations to Dr Stuart Jones who has won an Excellence in Doctoral Supervision Award from Durham University. The award recognises Stuart’s outstanding supervision of doctoral researchers (> 40 students) to completion of their studies and his significant contribution to their welfare and academic progress. The award was supported by nominations from many of his previous and current doctoral students. Stuart will be presented with the award at the Winter Graduation Ceremony in January 2019.

(25 Sep 2018)

Most Cited 2017 Bulletin of Volcanology paper

Congratulations to Antonio Capponi, who has won the Bulletin of Volcanology most cited paper 2017 award, for an early Career Reseacher. Antonio recieved his award at the conference Cities on Volcanoes 10 in Naples on 7 September, for his paper "Recycled ejecta modulating Strombolian explosions".

(25 Sep 2018)

Protecting against volcanic ash

A first of its kind study, led by Dr Claire Horwell of the Department of Earth Sciences and Institute of Hazard, Risk and Resilience, has found that industry-certified particle masks are most effective at protecting people from volcanic ash, whilst commonly used surgical masks offer less protection.

The study was undertaken in partnership with the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM), Edinburgh and the team hopes that their findings will inform responses to future volcanic eruptions.

(17 Sep 2018) » More about Protecting against volcanic ash

Earthquake research could improve seismic forecasts

The timing and size of three deadly earthquakes that struck Italy in 2016 may have been pre-determined, according to new research that could improve future earthquake forecasts.

A joint British-Italian team of geologists and seismologists have shown that the clustering of the three quakes might have been caused by the arrangement of a cross-cutting network of underground faults.

The findings show that although all three earthquakes occurred on the same major fault, several smaller faults prevented a single massive earthquake from occurring instead and also acted as pathways for naturally occurring fluids that triggered later earthquakes.

The cluster of three earthquakes, termed a “seismic sequence” by seismologists, each had magnitudes greater than six and killed more than 300 people in Italy’s Apennine mountains between 24 August and 30 October 2016.

(10 Aug 2018) » More about Earthquake research could improve seismic forecasts

Claire Horwell Wins Faculty of Science Inaugural Impact and Engagement Award

The remarkable impact of Claire’s work on advising the public on the health implications of volcanic emissions (“vog”) has been recognised by her receipt of the Faculty of Science’s Impact and Engagement Award. Claire directs the International Volcanic Health Hazard Network (IVHHN), an umbrella organisation for all research and dissemination of information on volcanic health hazards and impacts (https://www.ivhhn.org/home). This includes the Vog Dashboard through which information is disseminated (https://vog.ivhhn.org/). Over two weeks during the recent eruptions of Kilauea volcano on Hawaii, more than 50,000 people accessed the site, which Forbes.com highlighted as the primary source of information for communities in Hawaii. Congratulations!

(30 Jul 2018)