Most commented  

We introduce a new model of confined fission-track revelation, which simulates the etching process and accounts for variable along-track etching rates. This complete characterization explains many observations, including community difficulty in obtaining consistent track length measurements. It also provides a quantitative basis for optimizing etching procedures, and ultimately deriving more robust and reproducible fission-track ages and thermal histories.

We apply new rock luminescence techniques to a well-constrained scenario of the Beinn Alligin rock avalanche, NW Scotland. We measure accurate erosion rates consistent with independently-derived rates and reveal a transient state of erosion over the last ~4,000 years in the wet, temperate climate of NW Scotland. This study shows that the new luminescence erosion-meter has huge potential for inferring erosion rates on sub-millennial scales, which is currently impossible with existing techniques.

Fission tracks are generated in minerals due to spontaneous fission of U-238. The initial track length decreases with time due to recrystallization. The age of a track can be calculated by counting the number per volume of the shorter tracks and include the decay constant. However, the theoretical order of track length versus time is disrupted by uncertainties. We have shown how the order can be reestablished. It is then possible to determine the age of tectonic events such as uplift or burial.

A conventional isochron is a straight line fit to two sets of isotopic ratios, D / d and P / d, where P is the radioactive parent, D is the radiogenic daughter and d is a second isotope of the daughter element. The slope of this line is proportional to the age of the system. An inverse isochron is linear fit through d / D and P / D. The horizontal intercept of this line is inversely proportional to the age. The latter approach is preferred when d < D, which is the case in Re–Os and K–Ca geochronology.

Here we present the foundation dataset for “TephraNZ”, a formal, comprehensive, open access, reference dataset of glass-shard compositions for New Zealand tephras. We geochemically characterise 45 eruptive episodes ranging from Kaharoa (c. 636 cal. yrs BP) to the Hikuroa Pumice member (c. 2.0 Ma) from six or more caldera sources, most from the central Taupō Volcanic Zone.

Artificial intelligence techniques are capable of detecting fission tracks automatically in minerals. The here presented AI-Track-tive software can be used to automatically determine fission track densities for apatite fission track dating studies. Apatite fission track dating is mainly applied to tectonic studies studying exhumation rates in orogens. Now, time-consuming manual track counting is replaced by deep neural networks capable of automatically finding the large majority of the tracks.