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The eruption of Nevado del Ruiz volcano in Colombia in November 1985 killed an estimated 25,000 people in the town of Armero. Forty years on, Colombia has transformed its geological risk management in the wake of this disaster, recognizing the importance of institutions, knowledge sharing and engagement with local communities.
The aftermath of volcanic eruptions often reveals critical gaps in hazard and risk management. Effective global implementation of the lessons learned from disasters triggered by natural hazards is long overdue.
Volcanic disaster risk reduction has greater impact when rooted in community experience. We must recognize the importance of Indigenous knowledge to shape more culturally situated, equitable, respectful, and effective mitigation strategies.
Since the 1985 Nevado del Ruiz eruption that killed over 23,000 people in Armero, Colombia, risk communication has become central to volcanic crisis management. Despite the development of effective tools and programmes for volcanic risk communication, considerable challenges remain.
Nature Geoscience spoke with Daniel Andrade (Instituto Geofísico, Escuela Politécnica Nacional, Ecuador), Lucia Capra (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico), Kyoko Kataoka (Niigata University, Japan), and Anke Zernack (Massey University, New Zealand) about lahars — volcanic mud and debris flows — and the hazards they pose.
Nature Geoscience spoke with Jonatan Lassa, a scientist working on risk and disaster governance at Earth Sciences New Zealand; Carina Farnley, an interdisciplinary scientist researching natural hazards and warning systems at University College London (UK); and Jeroen Warner, a social scientist studying disaster governance from Wageningen University (Netherlands), about how institutions, communities, and decision-making processes shape the effectiveness of natural hazard management and disaster mitigation.
Greater accessibility to China’s vast archive of satellite Earth observations could enhance scientific progress, disaster preparedness, and international cooperation.
The global topographic dichotomy on Mars is a fundamental feature of the planet, but its origin remains debated. The timing now seems right for a Mars orbital gravity mission that could test competing dichotomy hypotheses.
For research papers first sent for peer review from mid-August, authors will be able to choose whether to publish the reviewers’ reports and their responses with their paper.
Graphite, a mineral made of carbon atoms arranged in layers, was long overlooked. Augusto Nobre explores how isolating these layers to create graphene sparked a wave of innovation, reviving interest in graphite across the geosciences.
Climate and ice sheet processes in Antarctica increasingly reflect those observed earlier in Greenland. Applying process insights from Greenland can improve projections of future Antarctic ice and climate behaviour.
A survey of geoscience researchers from across Africa highlights key challenges in conducting impactful research. Improved access to skills training can boost research success.
Barite is a relatively heavy mineral that is used in both the medical field and the oil and gas industry. Formed in marine environments, it also provides a valuable record of deep geological time.
The mineralogy of samples returned from asteroid Bennu yield valuable insights into the physical and chemical processes — on both small and large scales — that shape small bodies in the Solar System.
Sperrylite is a tiny and rare mineral. However, Hannah Hughes and colleagues explain why often-overlooked sperrylite and its diverse platinum-group mineral siblings are critical for the green energy transition.
Serendipity has long driven breakthroughs in geoscience. Evolving tools and a changing research landscape are reshaping the conditions for chance discoveries and how geoscientists can foster the next generation of unexpected insights.
