Earth | Page 1349 | Science Codex

Study: Tropical wetlands hold more carbon than temperate marshes

COLUMBUS, Ohio – In one of the first comparisons of its kind, researchers have demonstrated that wetlands in tropical areas are able to absorb and hold onto about 80 percent more carbon than can wetlands in temperate zones.

The scientists extracted soil cores from wetlands in Costa Rica and in Ohio and analyzed the contents of the sediment from the past 40 years. Based on their analysis, they estimated that the tropical wetland accumulated a little over 1 ton of carbon per acre per year, and the temperate wetland accumulated .6 tons of carbon per acre per year.

Arctic soil reveals climate change clues

Frozen arctic soil contains nearly twice the greenhouse-gas-producing organic material as was previously estimated, according to recently published research by University of Alaska Fairbanks scientists.

NASA study finds rising Arctic storm activity sways sea ice, climate

A new NASA study shows that the rising frequency and intensity of arctic storms over the last half century, attributed to progressively warmer waters, directly provoked acceleration of the rate of arctic sea ice drift, long considered by scientists as a bellwether of climate change.

Lichens function as indicators of nitrogen pollution in forests

Scientists have found lichens can give insight into nitrogen air pollution effects on Sierra Nevada and San Bernardino mountain ecosystems, and protecting them provides safeguards for less sensitive species.

Brookhaven scientists take off for southeastern Pacific climate study

UPTON, NY - During October and November 2008, some 150 scientists from 40 institutions in eight nations - including scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory - will take part in an international field experiment designed to make observations of critical components of the climate system of the southeastern Pacific.

Gas from the past gives scientists new insights into climate and the oceans

In recent years, public discussion of climate change has included concerns that increased levels of carbon dioxide will contribute to global warming, which in turn may change the circulation in the earth's oceans, with potentially disastrous consequences.

More research needed to make good on biofuel promise, experts say

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - While cellulosic biofuels derived from grasses, crop residues and inedible plant parts have real potential to be more efficient and environmentally friendly than grain-based biofuels like corn ethanol, more research and science-based policies are needed to reap these benefits, says an international group of experts.

Discovery of a type of aerosols from Sahara which will be useful to study climate change

and Spanish.

Scientists of the Soil Science and Geopharmacy Research Group of the University of Granada (Spain), directed by Rafael Delgado, have discivered and characterized a new type of atmospheric aerosols named 'iberulites', which could be useful for the study of relevant atmospheric reactions from Earth.

The geology of the Civil War

Alexandria, VA – Historians have spent decades analyzing the military actions of the Civil War. Now geologists are having their say.

Geologists are investigating how geological forces millions of years ago sculpted the terrain of Civil War battlefields — bringing a new perspective to the war's events. Read November's EARTH magazine and learn how igneous rock foiled the Confederates at Gettysburg, how powdery glacial sediments sealed Vicksburg's fate and why limestone was the soldiers' real enemy at Antietam.

Arctic sea ice annual freeze-up underway

After reaching the second-lowest extent ever recorded last month, sea ice in the Arctic has begun to refreeze in the face of autumn temperatures, closing both the Northern Sea Route and the direct route through the Northwest Passage.

Shift in bald eagle diet linked to sea otter decline

CORVALLIS, Ore. – A newly published study has found that the decline of sea otters along Alaska's Aleutian Islands has forced a change in the diet of a terrestrial predator – the bald eagle. The study demonstrates the extraordinary complexity of marine ecosystems and how far-ranging the impacts can be when there is a population shift in a keystone species like the sea otter.

The research was published in the October issue of Ecology, the journal of the Ecological Society of America.

Decline in Alaskan sea otters affects bald eagles' diet

Sea otters are known as a keystone species, filling such an important niche in ocean communities that without them, entire ecosystems can collapse. Scientists are finding, however, that sea otters can have even farther-reaching effects that extend to terrestrial communities and alter the behavior of another top predator: the bald eagle.

Paleozoic 'sediment curve' provides new tool for tracking sea-floor sediment movements

As the world looks for more energy, the oil industry will need more refined tools for discoveries in places where searches have never before taken place, geologists say.

One such tool is a new sediment curve (which shows where sediment-on-the-move is deposited), derived from sediments of the Paleozoic Era 542 to 251 million years ago, scientists report in this week's issue of the journal Science. The sediment curve covers the entire Paleozoic Era.

Scientists Find new migratory patterns for Mediterranean and Western Atlantic bluefin tuna

New research into the life cycle of Atlantic bluefin tuna shows, for the first time, that Mediterranean and North American bluefin mix substantially as juveniles, but return to their place of birth to spawn. These new research findings have critical implications for how bluefin tuna are managed on both sides of the Atlantic.

Experts agree: Environmental standards needed for biofuels

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The United States lacks the standards to ensure that producing biofuels from cellulose won't cause environmental harm, says a distinguished group of international scientists. But because the industry is so young, policymakers have an exceptional opportunity to develop incentive programs to ensure the industry doesn't harm the environment.