Lithium (Li) is one of the most popular raw materials for modern technologies. With the prospect of electricity management from renewable sources and the proposed development of electric mobility, the use of lithium batteries will increase substantially in the next decade. In Europe, the Bohemian Massif is a positive geological anomaly, containing the largest potential Li resources within the European Union. In order to support the theoretical knowledge of geological processes leading to lithium resources and to provide young scientists with information needed for lithium ore prospection and analysis, the Institute Geology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic organized the Course of Lithium Geology for graduate students. The course took place on August 27–September 1, 2018, in the Krušné Hory Mts. (Erzgebirge) with the participation of 13 students from 9 countries. Up-to-date scientific knowledge was provided to them by four leading specialists from the Institute of Geology, the Masaryk University and the Mendel University. The course also included an excursion to the former tin mines, now potential lithium sources, near Krupka and Cínovec. The course was funded by the Academy of Sciences with the help of geological companies TIMEX Zdice, s.r.o. and Geomet s.r.o. Brno.

A recently published paper in Earth-Science Reviews (IF 7.051), which was also contributed by scientists of the Institute of Geology (Michal Filippi and Jiří Adamovič), presents a newly recognized weathering form termed arcades. The arcades develop on the surface of sandstones but also arkoses, granites and volcanosedimentary rocks as a consequence of “stress shadows” developed along planar discontinuities (i.e., bedding planes, joints, etc.). Using physical and numerical modelling, this paper evidences that it is a principal feature of weathering of granular rocks, which explains also the origin of other widely known geomorphic forms of various sizes – such as rock pillars, some rock shelters or ledges.

Staff of the Institute of Geology of the Czech Academy of Sciences have been long participating in the exploration and research in karst areas, not only in the Czech Republic. Their effort resulted in discoveries of new caves, abysses and other karst phenomena, and yielded considerable scientific knowledge. A few days ago, the media released two interesting news documenting the cooperation of the Institute of Geology within speleological-geological projects. One of these activities brought a major discovery of new large caves in central China (for details click here and here). Another news relates to the co-operation on cave research in the Krkonoše Mts. (for details click here and here).

Two scientists of the Institute, Jiří Bek and Jana Frojdová, participated in the research of flora of „Pompeii in Wuda“ in November 2017. Uncovering of the Permian tropical forest was made special by frosty temperatures of minus ten degrees Celsius during the excavations. The difficult weather conditions were rewarded by the discovery of various species of ferns, sphenopsids, primitive conifers and also rare genera of Pterophyllum and Tingia. These Permian plants were studied by our scientists in the depository of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Nanjing. Now, they are processed in detail at the Institute of Geology CAS.