June 8, 2026

News and notes

Here are some news items that I thought were interesting. For my news items, I try to stick to open access papers.

If you enjoy my blogs, bookmark the site and check on Mondays rather than relying on social media postings which can get lost in the shuffle. For my news items, I try to stick to open access papers.

Comments

If anyone has comments on any of my postings, please leave a comment on the Linkedin page for the posting or email me at raymondreichelt@gmail.com.

Geopolitics

Oil prices up to June 8, 2026
Credit: Oilprice.com

Marine Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz
Credit: marinetraffic.com

Iran War

• On going coverage of the Iran War from Reuters.

• Current round of Israel-Iran missile fire exchange is 'behind us,' source tells 'Post'.

• U.S. House approves war powers resolution to halt military action against Iran.

• The Hormuz Squeeze Is Redrawing the Oil Map for Good.

• Top 10 African countries most dependent on oil from the Strait of Hormuz.

• 94 days of paralysis: The Strait of Hormuz remains choked off.

Other Geopolitics

• Ukraine: The War Is Expanding Whether They Admit It or Not.

• Bolivia unrest puts world-class lithium assets at risk.

• Chevron CEO sends blunt message on oil, the economy.

• IEA sees possibility of critically low stockpiles ahead of peak summer demand.

• South Korea seeks to boost crude oil and LNG imports from Canada.

Research and News

• Poster: Building a conceptual 3D geological model of the Wollaston fold-thrust belt, northern Saskatchewan: Implications for pegmatite-related rare earth elements (REE) targeting; Rare Earth Exchanges article here.

• Revisiting Quantitative Infrared Analysis of Absorbing Species in Anisotropic Media.

• The Triassic carbon cycle in turmoil: A 50-m.y. journey from extinction to renewal.

• Crystal structures and microstructures of quenchable Ti-bearing calcium silicate perovskites

• Microbially induced sedimentary structures in fluvial settings: the gas domes from the Bolzano Megacaldera (Permian, Italy).

• Late Miocene Euphrates River drained into a partially desiccated eastern Mediterranean.

• GSA Today: June 2026 Issue.

Plate Tectonics

• Deciphering the stratigraphic record of rifting and dynamic topography.

• Razor‐Sharp Edge—The Yakutat Slab Dissecting South‐Central Alaska.

• Granitic intrusions enhance strain localization and rapid mantle exhumation along an oceanic detachment fault.

Planetary Geology

• Crystal-chemical control of Na substitution into Martian apatite.

• High-pressure clinopyroxene in Northwest Africa 12774 and new geobarometric evidence for a planetary embryo-sized angrite parent body.

Paleontology

• First Non-Avian Theropod (Dromaeosauridae, Microraptorinae) From The Bird-Bearing Lower Cretaceous Xiagou Formation Of The Changma Basin, Gansu Province, Northwestern China; Live Science summary here.

• Deciduous dentition and ontogenetic development of the skull and teeth of Chilotherium (Mammalia, Perissodactyla, Rhinocerotidae) from the Late Miocene of Eurasia.

• Fossil fishes buried in the desert reveal a missing chapter in marine history.

• The late Middle Miocene (late Sarmatian) flora of Graz-Andritz (Austria): Environmental, climatic, and biogeographic patterns.

• A new species of gerbil (Gerbillidae, Rodentia, Mammalia) from the Early Pliocene of the Iberian Peninsula and its bearing on faunal dispersals during the Messinian (Late Miocene).

• High-fidelity modular skeletons authenticate a Cambrian origin for Bryozoa; Phys.org summary here.

• Rise of modern marine fishes captured in an early Paleocene Lagerstätte.

• A new genus of giant salamander (Urodela, Cryptobranchidae) from the Pliocene of Japan.

• A reassessment of the latest Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) pan-trionychid turtle Helopanoplia beecheri comb. Nov.

• An Exceptional Collection of Early Pleistocene Bustards (Aves: Otididae) and a Review of Fossil Pre-Middle Pleistocene Eurasian Otididae.

• Ambystoma quetzalcoatli, a fossil axolotl from Mexico; SciNews summary here.

• An in utero foetus of the Middle Triassic ichthyosaur Besanosaurus leptorhynchus from Monte San Giorgio, Italy.

Mining and Energy

• Labour dispute ends: Orla Mining Resumes Camino Rojo Ops After Illegal Blockade.

• Hoekstra casts Canada as key US critical minerals partner.

• Australia's 344-Million-Barrel Oilfield Could Finally Get the Green Light.

• Trump Auction Opens Arctic Refuge Drilling Rights for First Time Ever.

• UK Conservatives Blast Labour North Sea Ban as 'Utter Madness'.

• China’s nuclear power capacity nearly doubled since 2016.

• USA Rare Earth to invest $1.2B in South Carolina magnet plant.

• Cameco increases ownership of prominent Canadian uranium mine Cigar Lake.

Environmental Geology and Hydrogeology

• PFAS: They can’t drink their own water. Now they’re suing the province.

• About half of California waterways contaminated with PFAS, pesticide analysis finds.

• Shell pumped oil through Nigeria pipeline for years despite pollution evidence, documents show.

• Two decades of human- and climate-induced groundwater storage shifts in Brazil.

• The World's First Nuclear Waste Tomb Is Nearly Ready to Open.

• Phytoremediation: Ecosystem of Pansies Thrives on Soil Contaminated by Lead Mining–Turning it into Clean Organic Compounds.

• Austin, Texas: Researchers studying aquifer to gauge future of popular swimming hole.

Glaciers and Climate Change

• Lots of recent papers on glaciers in The Cryosphere from the EGU.

• A fan-shaped subglacial basin province in East Antarctica formed by rotational extension

• Ice core dust particles capture retreat of the Antarctic Ice Sheet during the Last Interglacial.

• Canadian wildfires are losing their climate-cooling influence from postfire snow albedo.

Bad Science

• B.C. securities regulator fines mining company over ‘false or misleading’ report; they used the electronic signature of a Qualified Person without his consent.

• How Corrupted Science Poisoned Society.

• Troubling new theories emerge after first missing scientist's body is found: Daughter's sensational HANDGUN claim and ex-FBI chief's urgent questions

Volcanoes, Earthquakes and Geohazards

Seismic Monitor

Active Volcano Map

Volcanoes

• Smithsonian / USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report.

• United States Geological Survey (USGS) Volcano Observatories:

• Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles: Young mountains old-rocks: A geological overview of the Teton range.

• Cascades Volcano Observatory Weekly Update.

• Volcano Watch – “Stick Season” in Hawaii? What Happened to the Leaves around Kīlauea Summit?

• Tonga’s Enormous Volcanic Eruption Cleaned Up Part of Its Own Methane Emissions in 2022, Hinting at a Way to Fight Climate Change.

• Deep Origin and Shallow Launch for the Etna 122 B.C. Mafic Plinian Eruption; Phys.org summary here.

Earthquakes

• Deadly M7.8 earthquake rocks southern Philippines; tsunami warning here.

• Scientists confirm a deep earthquake that shouldn't exist; journal references here and here.

• Deep M6.2 earthquake offshore southern Italy; USGS summary here.

Geohazards

Canadian Wildfire Map here.

USA Wildfire Map here.

Free Geology Books and Other Stuff

Free geology books can be downloaded from these sites:

• OreZone Readers and Experts Telegram Channel; the Ore Zone channel also shows employment opportunities for geologists.

• The Groundwater Projecthas many groundwater geology books for free downloadtogether with free online courses, listed here.

• Free Groundwater Modeling Courses from the HydroGeoCenter.

• Lectures on groundwater from the IAH, on YouTube.

• From Western Australia: Carbonatite, lamprophyre and host rocks in the northern Aileron Province.

• The Geology of Indonesia: Volume 1 and Volume 2.

• Brett Davis’ book on veins in a deforming rock mass: “The Veining Bible”; also at this site.

• From the Mineralogical Society of America: Handbook of Mineralogy.

• Systematic geochemical classification of felsic igneous rocks of the Yilgarn Craton.

• From the Arizona Geological Survey: Geochemistry Diagram Generator v 1.0.

• Online app: Australia’s full national topographic library at your fingertips.

• Paleolatitude; what was a place’s latitude in the geological past.

Upcoming Events

• June 23, 2026, Industrial AI is Earning its Place in Canadian Energy, IFS Nexus Black Lunch & Learn, Location: Calgary Petroleum Club.

• August 16 – 19, 2026, PEG2026: 11th International Symposium on Granitic Pegmatites; Perth, Western Australia.

• August 23 – 28, 2026, 24th Annual Conference of the International Association for Mathematical Geosciences, Montreal, Canada.

• 14-18 September 2026 , IAH 2026, 53rd Congress of the International Association of Hydrogeologists; Budapest Congress Center.

• September 24, 2026, 25 years of Extraordinary, Oakridges Moraine Groundwater Program, The Village of Black Creek, 1000 Murray Ross Pkwy, Toronto, ON.

• September 30 - October 3, 2026 SEG 2026 Conference Salt Lake City, United States.

• 5 - 7 October 2026 International Mine Health and Safety Conference 2026, Perth, Australia.

• October 14 – 17, 2026, Paleoamerican Odyssey 2026, Santa Fe Convention Center, Santa Fe, New Mexico.

• November 2-3, 2026 CCMEC 2026 Victoria Inn Hotel & Convention Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

• 12-20 August 2028, Geosciences for Humanity, 38th International Geological Congress, in the BMO Centre, Calgary.

• Society of Petroleum Engineers Distinguished Lecturer Schedule.

• American Geophysical Union List of Upcoming Meetings.

• The Geological Society: Events & Courses.

• Upcoming Distinguished Geoscience Australia Lectures (DGALs).