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Yosemite's ultra-deep canyon may have been carved in part by a ghost volcano and river, provocative research suggests
By Stephanie Pappas published
A river that drained the slopes of a now-vanished volcano may have carved Yosemite Valley's depths during the last 10 million years.

El Cono: The mysterious sacred 'pyramid' hidden deep in the Amazon rainforest
By Sascha Pare published
Cerro El Cono is a solitary, pyramidal hill in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest whose origins remain mysterious and that holds spiritual significance for Indigenous people.

Yellowstone holds potentially untapped cache of 'carbon-free' helium for rockets, reactors and superconductors
By Sascha Pare published
Conventional helium production comes with enormous carbon emissions, so scientists are looking for alternatives in places like Yellowstone, Tanzania's Rukwa Rift and India's Bakreswar-Tantloi province.

Iran's folded rocks: The crumpled mountains at the intersection of Asia and Europe
By Sascha Pare published
Iran's folded rocks are a colorful formation that is part of the Greater Caucasus mountains, which formed when the Eurasian tectonic plate collided with the Arabian plate millions of years ago.

'Quiet Chernobyl' changed Earth's surface so much the planet's mantle is still moving 80 years later
By Sascha Pare published
The land beneath the former Aral Sea in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan is rising and will continue to do so for many decades. Now, scientists have an explanation that involves the sea drying up.

Study reveals 'flawed argument' in debate over when plate tectonics began
By Stephanie Pappas published
You don't need plate tectonics to get continental crust that looks modern, a new study finds.

Massive magma eruptions may have ripped Africa and South America apart
By Stephanie Pappas published
Huge outpourings of magma accompanied the split between South America and Africa 135 million years ago.

Rainbow Mountains: China's psychedelic landscape created when 2 tectonic plates collided
By Sascha Pare published
The colorful swirls and stripes that characterize China's Rainbow Mountains would have remained hidden without the epic tectonic collision that created the Himalayas.
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