Earth | Page 1336 | Science Codex

Study: Can nature's leading indicators presage environmental disaster?

MADISON — Economists use leading indicators — the drivers of economic performance – to take the temperature of the economy and predict the future.

Now, in a new study, scientists take a page from the social science handbook and use leading indicators of the environment to presage the potential collapse of ecosystems. The study, published today (Jan. 5) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by two ecologists and an economist, suggests it may be possible to use nature's leading indicators to avert environmental disaster.

Volcanoes cool the tropics, say researchers

Climate researchers have shown that big volcanic eruptions over the past 450 years have temporarily cooled weather in the tropics—but suggest that such effects may have been masked in the 20th century by rising global temperatures. Their paper, which shows that higher latitudes can be even more sensitive to volcanism, appears in the current issue of Nature Geoscience.

California study shows shade trees reduce summertime electricity use

PORTLAND, Ore. January 5, 2009. A recent study shows that shade trees on the west and south sides of a house in California can reduce a homeowner's summertime electric bill by about $25.00 a year. The study, conducted last year on 460 single-family homes in Sacramento, is the first large-scale study to use utility billing data to show that trees can reduce energy consumption.

Models simulate nitrate dynamics in Garonne, Southwest France

MADISON, WI, DECEMBER 29, 2008 – The over-enrichment of fresh, transitional, and marine waters with nitrogen (N) can lead to problems associated with eutrophication, such as a change in species composition of aquatic plants and nuisance algal blooms. In this context, dynamic models of flow and water quality are required to aid the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and to understand the impacts of environmental change.

Trapped water cause of regular tremors under Vancouver Island: UBC researchers

University of British Columbia researchers are offering the first compelling evidence to explain regular tremors under Vancouver Island.

Slip rate along the Lijiang-Ninglang fault zone estimated from repeating microearthquakes

The China Digital Seismic Network (CDSN) provides excellent opportunities to quantify the kinematics and characterize the dynamics of the active fault systems in China. By carefully examining waveforms microearthquakes occurring in South China (Yunnan Province) in the period of 1999—2006, we found that approximately 40% of the earthquakes are similar or repeating events. Along the Lijiang-Ninglang fault, we used 2 well-organized clusters that occurred in the brittle-ductile transition zone to estimate the deep slip rate.

Stronger coastal winds due to climate change may have far-reaching effects

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--Future increases in wind strength along the California coast may have far-reaching effects, including more intense upwelling of cold water along the coast early in the season and increased fire danger in Southern California, according to researchers at the Climate Change and Impacts Laboratory at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Abrupt climate shifts may move faster than thought

San Francisco-- The United States could suffer the effects of abrupt climate changes within decades—sooner than some previously thought--says a new government report. It contends that seas could rise rapidly if melting of polar ice continues to outrun recent projections, and that an ongoing drought in the U.S. west could be the start of permanent drying for the region. Commissioned by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program, the report was authored by experts from the U.S. Geological Survey, Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and other leading institutions.

CAT scan reveals inner workings of volcano island

On the ground and in the water, an international team of researchers has been collecting imaging data on the Soufriere Hills Volcano in Montserrat to understand the internal structure of the volcano and how and when it erupts.

Timetable for Puget Sound restoration suffers setback

SEQUIM, WA – The slow natural restoration of hazardous sediments mired beneath the Puget Sound is progressing, thanks to Mother Nature and a stiff dose of federal environmental regulations.

But, researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory warn that this recovery process may take 10 to 30 years longer than first predicted, because of increased urban growth and its associated untreated runoff.

Life on Mars? Brown-led research team says elusive mineral bolsters chances

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Over the last several years, scientists have built a very convincing case that Mars hosted water, at least early in its history. Recent observations from the Mars Phoenix lander and other spacecraft show that the planet still holds vast deposits of water as ice at its poles and in soil-covered glaciers in the mid-latitudes.

NGC 2264, The Cosmic Christmas Tree Star Cluster 30 Light Years Across

The festive season has arrived for astronomers at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in the form of this dramatic new image. It shows the swirling gas around the region known as NGC 2264 — an area of sky that includes the sparkling blue baubles of the Christmas Tree star cluster.

NGC 2264 lies about 2600 light-years from Earth in the obscure constellation of Monoceros, the Unicorn, not far from the more familiar figure of Orion, the Hunter. The image shows a region of space about 30 light-years across.

New World post-pandemic reforestation helped start Little Ice Age, say Stanford scientists

The power of viruses is well documented in human history. Swarms of little viral Davids have repeatedly laid low the great Goliaths of human civilization, most famously in the devastating pandemics that swept the New World during European conquest and settlement.

In recent years, there has been growing evidence for the hypothesis that the effect of the pandemics in the Americas wasn't confined to killing indigenous peoples. Global climate appears to have been altered as well.

Moon's polar craters could be the place to find lunar ice, scientists report

Scientists have discovered where they believe would be the best place to find ice on the moon.

Astrophysicists, led by an expert at Durham University, say if frozen water exists then it is most likely to be found near to the moon's poles in craters that are permanently shaded from the sun.

Their findings are based on a new computer analysis of data from the Lunar Prospector, a space probe sent to the moon in 1998 by NASA. The researchers showed that hydrogen on the moon is concentrated into polar craters where temperatures are colder than minus 170 degrees Celsius.

Ancient soil replenishment technique helps in battle against global warming

Former inhabitants of the Amazon Basin enriched their fields with charred organic materials-biochar-and transformed one of the earth's most infertile soils into one of the most productive. These early conservationists disappeared 500 years ago, but centuries later, their soil is still rich in organic matter and nutrients. Now, scientists, environmental groups and policymakers forging the next world climate agreement see biochar not only as an important tool for replenishing soils, but as a powerful tool for combating global warming.