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Lower Part of Earth’s Atmosphere is Warming, Data Review Concludes

By Guest PostNovember 16, 2010Environmentatmosphere, climate models, earth, lower part, north carolina state university, troposphere, warming

The troposphere, the lower part of the atmosphere closest to the Earth, is warming in ways that are broadly consistent with both theoretical expectations and climate models, according to a new scientific study from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the NOAA-North Carolina State University Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites (CICS).

Since the development of the first climate models in the 1960s, the troposphere has been projected to warm along with the earth’s surface because of the increasing amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This expectation has not significantly changed even with major advances in climate models. (more…)

Climate Change: Cultural Shift Needed Similar to Smoking, Slavery

By Guest PostOctober 28, 2010Culture, Environmentandy hoffman, attitudes, cigarette smoking, climate change, cultural attitudes, cultural shift, earth, ecological systems, erb institute, fossil fuels, holcim professor, moral problem, planetary scale, scientific evidence, slavery, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Despite scientific evidence of climate change, it will take a significant cultural shift in attitudes to address the situation, says a University of Michigan researcher.

The shift would be much like what has happened with recent cigarette smoking bans and even similar to the abolition of slavery in the 19th century.

“The present reality is that we tend to overlook the social dimensions of environmental issues and focus strictly on their technological and economic aspects,” said Andy Hoffman, the Holcim (U.S.) Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at the Ross School of Business and School of Natural Resources and Environment. “To properly address climate change, we must change the way we structure our organizations and the way we think as individuals. (more…)

Climate Change May Create Tipping Points for Populations, Not Just Species

By Guest PostOctober 23, 2010Environmentalpine, Arctic, biological effects of climate change, climate change, climate warms, daniel doak, duke university, earth, ecological challenges, ecologist, mountains of colorado, national science foundation, new mexico, nsf, plants, plants and animals, saran twombly, william morris

*Researchers measure survival, reproduction of thousands of arctic and alpine plants over six years*

As Earth’s climate warms, species are expected to shift their geographical ranges away from the equator or to higher elevations.

While scientists have documented such shifts for many plants and animals, the ranges of others seem stable. (more…)

Earth’s Highest Coastal Mountain on the Move

By Guest PostSeptember 20, 20101 commentScienceagustin cardona, camilo montes, caribbean sea, coastal mountain, Colombia, earth, ecopetrol energy company, geological basin, geological evolution, german ojeda, paleomagnetic, panama, peru, santa marta, sierra nevada de santa marta, smithsonian scientists, smithsonian tropical research institute, stri, volcanoes

The rocks of Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta—the highest coastal mountain on Earth—tell a fascinating tale: The mountain collides and then separates from former super-continents. Volcanoes are born and die. The mountain travels from Peru to northern Colombia and finally rotates in a clockwise direction to open up an entirely new geological basin. Smithsonian scientists were part of a four-year project to study Santa Marta’s geological evolution. Their findings are published in the October 2010 special issue of the Journal of South American Earth Sciences.

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Arctic Sea Ice Reaches Lowest 2010 Extent, Third Lowest in Satellite Record

By Guest PostSeptember 17, 2010Environmentarctic sea, atmosphere, earth, greenhouse gases, ice, NASA, natural climate, satellites, serreze, shrinking arctic sea ice, snow and ice data center, university of colorado at boulder

The Arctic sea ice cover appears to have reached its minimum extent for the year, the third-lowest recorded since satellites began measuring sea ice extent in 1979, according to the University of Colorado at Boulder’s National Snow and Ice Data Center.

(more…)

New Hubble Observations of Supernova 1987A Reveal Composition of ‘Star Guts’ Pouring Out

By Guest PostSeptember 4, 20101 commentScience13.7 billion years ago, astronomer, big bang, dwarf galaxy, earth, emission, hubble repair mission, Hubble Space Telescope, kevin france, large magellanic cloud, milky way galaxy, NASA, observations, richard mccray, Space, star guts, string of pearls, supernova, supernova 1987A, university of colorado at boulder

Observations made with NASA’s newly refurbished Hubble Space Telescope of a nearby supernova are allowing astronomers to measure the velocity and composition of “star guts” being ejected into space following the explosion, according to a new study led by the University of Colorado at Boulder.

(more…)

Arctic Rocks Offer New Glimpse of Primitive Earth

By Guest PostAugust 16, 2010Sciencebaffin island, baffin island lavas, baffin island rocks, canadian arctic, carnegie institution, don francis, earth, geochemical evidence, helium-3, helium-4, mantle, matthew jackson, new window, radioactive, reservoir, richard carlson, thorium, uranium

Scientists have discovered a new window into the Earth’s violent past. Geochemical evidence from volcanic rocks collected on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic suggests that beneath it lies a region of the Earth’s mantle that has largely escaped the billions of years of melting and geological churning that has affected the rest of the planet. Researchers believe the discovery offers clues to the early chemical evolution of the Earth.

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Expedition to Mid-Cayman Rise Identifies Unusual Variety of Deep Sea Vents

By Guest PostJuly 22, 2010Scienceaist, autonomous underwater vehicles, auvs, black smoker, caribbean sea, cayman trough, chris german, ctd, dana yoerger, earth, hybrid vehicle, hydrothermal vents, interior, Japan, jon copley, ko-ichi nakamura, lost city, louis whitcomb, max coleman, mcr, mid-cayman rise, NASA, nereus, north american plate, piccard and walsh, r/v cape hatteras, woods hole oceanographic institution

*Method included first use of Nereus hybrid vehicle in ‘autonomous’ mode*

The first expedition to search for deep-sea hydrothermal vents along the Mid-Cayman Rise has turned up three distinct types of hydrothermal venting, reports an interdisciplinary team led by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

(more…)

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