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Reframing Climate Change: It’s as Much Cultural as Scientific

By Guest PostMarch 16, 2011Culture, EnvironmentAl Gore, andy hoffman, climate change, climate change exists, debate, democrats, diagnostic, Environment, evidence of global warming, logic schism, man made phenomena, newspaper editorials, political ideology, prognostic, republicans, united states, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— While debate on climate change often strikes a caustic tone, the real impediment to meaningful dialogue is that the two sides often talk past each other in what amounts to a “logic schism,” says a University of Michigan researcher.

“In a logic schism, a contest emerges in which opposing sides are debating different issues, seeking only information that supports their position and disconfirms their opponents’ arguments,” said Andy Hoffman, the Holcim (U.S.) Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at U-M’s Ross School of Business and School of Natural Resources and Environment. “Each side views the other with suspicion, even demonizing the other, leading to a strong resistance to any form of engagement, much less negotiation and concession.” (more…)

Gulf Coast Monitor: Sensor Designed to Detect Oil Contaminants in Saltwater

By Guest PostMarch 15, 2011Environmentcoastal waters, oil contaminants, presence of oil, saltwater, sensor, water sample

With more than 20,000 abandoned and active gas and oil wells in the Gulf of Mexico, oil leaks and spills pose a continuous threat to the region’s ecosystem. Monitoring the health of the ecosystems helps ensure the sustainability of natural resources, and helps protect human health and the environment. (more…)

Japan Quake May Have Shortened Earth Days, Moved Axis

By Guest PostMarch 15, 2011Environment, Scienceaxis, Chile, complex model, earth mass, earth rotation, earthquake, figure axis, gravitational attraction, Japan, japan earthquake, japan quake, length of earth day, march 11, microseconds, richard gross, sumatran earthquake, theoretical calculation, united states geological survey

The March 11, magnitude 9.0 earthquake in Japan may have shortened the length of each Earth day and shifted its axis. But don’t worry-you won’t notice the difference.

Using a United States Geological Survey estimate for how the fault responsible for the earthquake slipped, research scientist Richard Gross of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., applied a complex model to perform a preliminary theoretical calculation of how the Japan earthquake-the fifth largest since 1900-affected Earth’s rotation. His calculations indicate that by changing the distribution of Earth’s mass, the Japanese earthquake should have caused Earth to rotate a bit faster, shortening the length of the day by about 1.8 microseconds (a microsecond is one millionth of a second). (more…)

Extent and Speed of Lionfish Spread Unprecedented

By Guest PostMarch 15, 2011Environment, Natureatlantic coast, bermuda, caribbean, cayman islands, coast of florida, coastal systems, gulf of mexico, indo west pacific ocean, invasive lionfishes, lionfish, lionfish diets, native species, non native marine fish, pam schofield, species, u s eastern seaboard

*Invasive Marine Fish May Stress Reefs*

Gainesville, Fla. — The rapid spread of lionfishes along the U.S. eastern seaboard, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean is the first documented case of a non-native marine fish establishing a self-sustaining population in the region, according to recent U.S. Geological Survey studies.

“Nothing like this has been seen before in these waters,” said Dr. Pam Schofield, a biologist with the USGS Southeast Ecological Science Center here. “We’ve observed sightings of numerous non-native species, but the extent and speed with which lionfish have spread has been unprecedented; lionfishes pretty much blanketed the Caribbean in three short years.” (more…)

West Antarctic Ice Sheet ‘Could Be More Stable than Thought’

By Guest PostMarch 14, 2011Environmentantarctic ice sheet, cataclysmic event, cosmogenic dating, global temperatures, global warming, interglacial period

Whether global warming may cause the giant West Antarctic Ice Sheet to melt and raise sea-levels by several metres is one of the most contested debates in climate science. (more…)

NASA Shows Topography of Tsunami-Damaged Japan City

By Guest PostMarch 13, 2011Environmentcoastal plain, earthquake, Japan, miyagi prefecture, NASA, national geospatial intelligence agency, nga, ohu mountains, pacific ocean, radar image, sendai, shuttle radar topography mission, srtm, subduction plate boundary, topography, tsunami, u s geological survey

The topography surrounding Sendai, Japan is clearly visible in this combined radar image and topographic view generated with data from NASA’s Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) acquired in 2000. On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck offshore about 130 kilometers (80 miles) east of Sendai, the capital city of Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture, generating a tsunami that devastated the low-lying coastal city of about 1 million residents.

The city is centered in the image and lies along the coastal plain between the Ohu Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. The eastern part of the city is a low-lying plains area, while the city center is hilly (the city’s official elevation is about 43 meters, or 141 feet). Sendai’s western areas are mountainous, with its highest point being Mt. Funagata at an elevation of about 1,500 meters (4,921 feet) above sea level. (more…)

WHOI Experts Stress Lessons From Japan Earthquake

By Guest PostMarch 13, 2011Environmentearthquake zone, japan quake, percent of earthquakes, smaller quake, tsunami scenario

While Japan’s 8.9-magnitude earthquake and accompanying tsunami represent a devastating natural disaster for the country’s residents, scientists should also seize upon the massive temblor as an important learning tool for future quakes around the world, including the Pacific Northwest coast of the United States, according to experts from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI). (more…)

Gulf Oil Spill Study Sheds Light On Urban Air Pollution

By Guest PostMarch 12, 20111 commentEnvironmentbp deepwater horizon, gouw, gulf oil spill, microscopic particles, noaa, organic aerosols, university of california, university of colorado boulder, university of miami, urban air pollution, urban environments, volatile components

When a team of researchers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the University of Colorado Boulder’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences raced to the scene of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill to assess the disaster’s impact on air quality last year, they found more than they expected. (more…)

Category Archives: Environment