Get your Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface paper right the first time: a ready-made structure with the right abstract and citations, so editors see your science, not formatting slips.
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Authored by Sumalatha Gangadhar | Published on 17 August, 2026
Submitting to Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface goes smoothly when your draft already matches the journal's own rules. Editors screen new manuscripts against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface guide for authors before peer review, so formatting, structure, and required statements should be right on the first draft rather than repaired during upload. This template sets that structure up for you.
It is a manuscript shell aligned to Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface. It covers front matter, the abstract the journal expects, a body organized to the journal's article types, and a reference list in the journal's required style. Confirm current scope and article types on the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface journal page before you draft.
Prepare the title, authors, affiliations, and ORCID iDs. Write the abstract to the journal's rule and word limit, organize the body to the article type, and apply the required reference style from the first citation. Complete every declaration (ethics, competing interests, funding, data availability) the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface guide for authors lists, and cite figures and tables in order.
The common failure modes are formatting or reference style that does not match the guide for authors, missing required statements, and an incomplete portal checklist. Clear all three against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface guide for authors before you submit.
The shell mirrors what editorial staff check first: article-type fit, the abstract rules, required declarations, and the journal's reference style. For more detail see the author resources. When your draft is ready, upload it through the journal's submission system.
| Element | J Geophysical Res Earth Surface requirement |
|---|---|
| Abstract | Single paragraph, less than 250 words. No structured format required. Should state the nature of the investigation and summarize important conclusions. Should not include table or figure mentions. Should avoid reference citations unless dependent on or directly related to another paper. Must define all abbreviations |
| Main text | Research Articles: up to 25 publication units (PU), where 1 PU = 500 words or 1 display element (figure or table). Word count does NOT include title, authors, affiliations, key points, keywords, text in tables (but not captions), and references. Longer papers assessed an excess length fee |
| Declarations | Ethics approval/consent as applicable; competing interests; funding; data availability |
| Figures/tables | Publication-ready; cited in order |
| Supplemental | Upload separately when used |
| Keywords | Up to 5 index terms from the AGU Index Set (provided at time of submission), plus up to 6 additional free-form keywords optional for facilitating online searches |
| References | Name-date format (author-year style, e.g., 'Zhu et al., 2016' or 'Zhu et al., 2009'). Citations enclosed in parentheses in text. Not numbered references. Detailed citation formatting available in AGU's Style Guide |
| Peer review | Single anonymized (single-blind): author names and affiliations are visible to editors and reviewers, but reviewer names are kept confidential |
| Submission | jgr-earthsurface-submit.agu.org/submit |
Read the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface guide for authors once before drafting and once before upload. Draft the abstract after results are stable. Set the reference style before adding citations. Keep a cover letter that states your contribution and fit to Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface in under a page.
Skim two or three recent J Geophysical Res Earth Surface papers to calibrate depth and figure style. Make the novelty clear in the first two pages. Deposit data and code when the policy on the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface journal page requires it. Disclose any preprint or conference version with identifiers in the cover letter.
Do one focused pass against the Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface guide for authors: scope, length, reference style, required declarations, and figure quality. Then submit through the journal's submission system.