# Most-cited Earth and Planetary Sciences papers of 2016, with free PDFs

The 25 most-cited Earth and Planetary Sciences research papers published in 2016, ranked by citations in OpenAlex, with their original abstracts and free PDFs where available.

1. [The Anthropocene is functionally and stratigraphically distinct from the Holocene](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2235208287) · 2,383 citations
2. [Persistent sulfate formation from London Fog to Chinese haze](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2554285426) · 1,490 citations
3. [High‐resolution CSR GRACE RL05 mascons](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2523841373) · 1,420 citations
4. [Climate-driven regime shift of a temperate marine ecosystem](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2473009902) · 1,413 citations
5. [Reactive nitrogen chemistry in aerosol water as a source of sulfate during haze events in China](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2564015495) · 1,316 citations
6. [A review of biomass burning: Emissions and impacts on air quality, health and climate in China](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2557771700) · 1,276 citations · Free PDF
7. [Hydrologic Impacts of Thawing Permafrost—A Review](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2432405417) · 1,122 citations
8. [Submesoscale currents in the ocean](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2400488166) · 1,088 citations
9. [Ocean Basin Evolution and Global-Scale Plate Reorganization Events Since Pangea Breakup](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2178317302) · 1,067 citations
10. [Responses of Marine Organisms to Climate Change across Oceans](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2338326115) · 1,056 citations · Free PDF
11. [Community‐Derived Standards for LA ‐ ICP ‐ MS U‐(Th‐)Pb Geochronology – Uncertainty Propagation, Age Interpretation and Data Reporting](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2342124398) · 1,049 citations
12. [Classification of liptinite – ICCP System 1994](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2008874249) · 1,046 citations
13. [Optical properties of dissolved organic matter (DOM): Effects of biological and photolytic degradation](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2564665973) · 1,001 citations
14. [Formation of the Isthmus of Panama](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2516907192) · 987 citations
15. [Zooplankton and the Ocean Carbon Cycle](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2461165776) · 978 citations
16. [Crystal Nucleation in Liquids: Open Questions and Future Challenges in Molecular Dynamics Simulations](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2399366718) · 962 citations · Free PDF
17. [Enhanced haze pollution by black carbon in megacities in China](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2465847861) · 902 citations
18. [A Review of Classical and Nonclassical Nucleation Theories](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2526029269) · 864 citations
19. [The role of low-volatility organic compounds in initial particle growth in the atmosphere](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2402991992) · 856 citations · Free PDF
20. [A Late Pleistocene sea level stack](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2156752901) · 855 citations
21. [Ecological consequences of human niche construction: Examining long-term anthropogenic shaping of global species distributions](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2409668806) · 840 citations
22. [The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission for Science and Society](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2560821854) · 832 citations
23. [Ion-induced nucleation of pure biogenic particles](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2402503711) · 801 citations · Free PDF
24. [The Effectiveness, Costs and Coastal Protection Benefits of Natural and Nature-Based Defences](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2345862122) · 798 citations · Free PDF
25. [Global patterns of kelp forest change over the past half-century](https://nerdi.pages.dev/paper/W2554163354) · 789 citations

Canonical page: https://nerdi.pages.dev/papers/earth-and-planetary-sciences/most-cited-2016