The melting ice from glaciers worldwide is leading to an increased loss of regional freshwater resources. And it is causing global sea levels to rise at ever-greater rates. Since the year 2000, glaciers have been losing 273 billion tons of ice annually, according to estimates by an international research community led by researchers of the University of Zurich.

Tiny algae darken the surface of glaciers and thus accelerate their melting. This is the case, for example, on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which plays an important role in our climate and is already melting increasingly fast due to global warming. A study by the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen, Germany, and the University of Aarhus, Denmark, now shows that the ice algae grow extremely efficiently, despite the fact that there are hardly any nutrients available to them on the ice.

In a recent paper published in National Science Review, a jointed team of scholars from China and UK has made significant progress in understanding the genesis of volcanic rocks in subduction zones. By analyzing the magnesium and boron isotopic compositions of volcanic rocks and forearc serpentinites from the South Sandwich Island arc, a globally representative island arc, the team proposed a novel mechanism for island arc magma formation. Their findings suggest that island arc volcanic rocks can originate from the partial melting of serpentinite-dominated mélanges. This breakthrough significantly advances the understanding of the processes and mechanisms of material recycling in subduction zones.