Tag Archives: california

US West Coast Erosion Spiked In Winter 2009-10, Previewing Likely Future As Climate Changes

By Guest PostJuly 13, 2011Environmentamerican geophysical union, california, climate change scenarios, climatic pattern, el niño, el nino modoki, equatorial pacific, global warming, ocean beach, oregon state university, pacific coast, pacific northwest, patrick barnard, san diego, san francisco, scripps institution of oceanography, us west coast, willapa bay

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – Knowing that the U.S. west coast was battered during the winter before last by a climatic pattern expected more often in the future, scientists have now pieced together a San Diego-to-Seattle assessment of the damage wrought by that winter’s extreme waves and higher-than-usual water levels. Getting a better understanding of how the 2009-10 conditions tore away and reshaped shorelines will help coastal experts better predict future changes that may be in store for the Pacific coast, the researchers say.

“The stormy conditions of the 2009-10 El Niño winter eroded the beaches to often unprecedented levels at sites throughout California and vulnerable sites in the Pacific Northwest,” said Patrick Barnard, USGS coastal geologist. In California, for example, winter wave energy was 20 percent above average for the years dating back to 1997, resulting in shoreline erosion that exceeded the average by 36 percent, he and his colleagues found. (more…)

Summer Sailing in the Cloud With Office 365

By Guest PostJuly 5, 2011Technologyamerican spirit, ben vanheusden, boston whaler, california, chelsea piers, chicago to new orleans, ft lauderdale, john bertsch, john mirassou, lync online, marty burke, maryland, Microsoft, microsoft technology, motorboats, new york city, norfolk, office 365, penny delgadillo, redondo beach, sailors, sea, spirit 7, statue of liberty, tough economic times, Washington

*Three friends are sailing the U.S. Eastern Seaboard in search of the American spirit. They’ve chronicled their journey and stayed connected with help from Office 365, an official sponsor of the trip.*

BOSTON – July 5, 2011 – In 1987, John Mirassou and two friends set sail from Ft. Lauderdale on a 17-foot Boston Whaler. They didn’t expect to find anything more than good times on their journey, which ultimately logged some 6,100 miles. They were wrong.

“What started out as way to see the country by boat really turned into a story about the American people,” Mirassou said. “Everywhere we went we were taken in by people we had never met. This American spirit came out in amazing instances of generosity.” (more…)

Genetic Analysis Splits Desert Tortoise into Two Species

By Guest PostJune 29, 2011Environment, Natureagassiz desert tortoise, arizona, army physician, california, california state university dominguez hills, colorado river, desert tortoise, dna evidence, endangered species act, fish and wildlife service, fws, genetic evidence, gopherus agassizii, gopherus morafkai, habitat preferences, j g cooper, kristin berry, Mexico, morafka desert tortoise, nevada, northern arizona, robert murphy, roy averill murray, san francisco earthquake, Smithsonian, species, us army fort irwin, usaf edwards air force base, usgs, utah

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – A new study shows that the desert tortoise, thought to be one species for the past 150 years, now includes two separate and distinct species, based on DNA evidence and biological and geographical distinctions.

This genetic evidence confirms previous suspicions, based on life history analysis, that tortoises west and east of the Colorado River are two separate species. (more…)

Yale to Receive Kissinger Papers and Establish the Johnson Center for the Study of American Diplomacy

By Guest PostJune 17, 2011Politicsarchival repository, brady johnson program, california, colonel edward house, cyrus vance, dean Acheson, franklin resources, henry kissinger, henry stimson, johnson center, president richard c. levin, professor john lewis gaddis, san mateo, study of american diplomacy, u.s. foreign policy

President Richard C. Levin today announced that Dr. Henry A. Kissinger will donate his papers to Yale University. The collection, which consists of approximately one million documents and objects covering Dr. Kissinger’s extraordinary life as a diplomat, scholar, teacher, and private citizen, will enhance Yale’s existing strengths as an archival repository for major 20th century American leaders. Yale already holds the papers of renowned former diplomats and alumni Henry Stimson (Class of 1888), Dean Acheson (Class of 1915), and Cyrus Vance (Class of 1939, LAW ’42), as well as those of President Woodrow Wilson’s most influential adviser, “Colonel” Edward House. (more…)

Aggressive Efficiency and Electrification Needed to Cut California Emissions

By Guest PostMay 27, 2011Environmentbehavioral changes, berkeley lab, california, california energy future¬¬, carbon capture and sequestration, CCS, demand for energy, domestic cooking, electrification, energy future, Europe, greenhouse gas emissions, jeff greenblatt, jim mcmahon, max wie, nobel prizes, nuclear energy, population, renewable, renewable energy sources, scientific innovation, university of california, water heating

*Berkeley Lab joint report offers a variety of scenarios to reduce emissions to 80% below 1990 levels.*

Berkeley, CA — In the next 40 years, California’s population is expected to surge from 37 million to 55 million and the demand for energy is expected to double. Given those daunting numbers, can California really reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, as required by an executive order? Scientists from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who co-wrote a new report on California’s energy future are optimistic that the target can be achieved, though not without bold policy and behavioral changes as well as some scientific innovation.

The report, titled “California’s Energy Future—The View to 2050,” draws a series of energy system “portraits” showing how California can meet its ambitious emissions targets using a combination of measures and energy sources that may include electrification, enhanced efficiency, nuclear energy, renewable energy sources, grid modernization, and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). (more…)

NASA Mission Will Observe Earth’s Salty Seas

By Guest PostMay 18, 2011Scienceaquarius, aquarius sac d observatory, Argentina, atmosphere, california, climate, comision nacional de actividades espaciales, conae, conveyor belt, deep ocean, delta ii rocket, earth climate, gary lagerloef, melting of sea ice, NASA, ocean circulation, ocean surface salinity, polar regions, radiometer, river runoff, salinity, salinity variations, seattle, space agency, vandenberg air force base, water cycle

PASADENA, Calif. – Final preparations are under way for the June 9 launch of the international Aquarius/SAC-D observatory. The mission’s primary instrument, Aquarius, will study interactions between ocean circulation, the water cycle and climate by measuring ocean surface salinity.

Engineers at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California are performing final tests before mating Aquarius/SAC-D to its Delta II rocket. The mission is a collaboration between NASA and Argentina’s space agency, Comision Nacional de Actividades Espaciales (CONAE), with participation from Brazil, Canada, France and Italy. SAC stands for Satelite de Applicaciones Cientificas. Aquarius was built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. (more…)

Yahoo! Inc. Releases Statement Regarding Alipay

By Guest PostMay 12, 2011Technologyalibaba group, alipay, around the globe, california, complex situation, digital media company, economic value, shareholders, softbank, Sunnyvale, Yahoo

SUNNYVALE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)— Yahoo! Inc., issued the following statement in response to recent media reports regarding the timing of the restructuring of Alipay:

On March 31, 2011, Yahoo! and Softbank were notified by Alibaba Group of two transactions that occurred without the knowledge or approval of the Alibaba Group board of directors or shareholders. The first was the transfer of ownership of Alipay in August 2010. The second was the deconsolidation of Alipay effective in the first quarter of 2011. (more…)

Aquarius to Illuminate Links Between Salt, Climate

By Guest PostMay 12, 20111 commentEnvironment, Scienceage of aquarius, arctic ocean, Argentina, broadway musical, california, climate, climate change, concentration of salt, earth, evaporation, founder of buddhism, freshwater, gary lagerloef, gautama siddhartha, global precipitation patterns, hair, heavens, ice melt, jupiter, mars, moon, NASA, national space agency, ocean, ocean circulation, ocean surface roughness, ocean surface salinity data, rainfall, river runoff, salinity, salt seeking aquarius, satellite studies, scatterometer, tropical rainfall measuring mission, vandenberg air force base, water cycle, waves

When NASA’s salt-seeking Aquarius instrument ascends to the heavens this June, the moon above its launch site at California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base won’t be in the seventh house, and Jupiter’s latest alignment with Mars will be weeks in the past, in contrast to the lyrics of the song from the popular Broadway musical “Hair.” Yet for the science team eagerly awaiting Aquarius’ ocean surface salinity data, the dawning of NASA’s “Age of Aquarius” promises revelations on how salinity is linked to Earth’s water cycle, ocean circulation and climate.

Salinity – the concentration of salt – on the ocean surface is a key missing puzzle piece in satellite studies of Earth that will improve our understanding of how the ocean and atmosphere are coupled and work in tandem to affect our climate. While satellites already measure sea surface temperature and winds, rainfall, water vapor, sea level, and ocean color, measurements of ocean surface salinity have, until quite recently, been limited to sparse data collected from ships, buoys and a small number of airborne science campaigns. (more…)